Dan Bowman is not your typical family pastor. The youthful 39-year-old is stylish, tattooed and has a Black Eyed Peas song as his ringtone.
Nevertheless, the unconventional man of God is doing big things. This week, Bowman flew to Haiti to help deliver more than 40,000 pounds of food for earthquake disaster relief.
“It’s 1 million servings. This effort will be the first of many,” said Bowman, who works at Gateway Bible Church in Scotts Valley.
The endeavor was put together through a collaboration between Gateway and a San Joaquin-based group, Gleanings for the Hungry, which donated all the food.
Bowman said the entire operation took about two weeks to put together.
The 20 tons of sustenance was shipped by freight and will arrive at the Haitian city of Saint-Marc on Saturday, Feb. 13. Gateway helped foot the $8,500 cost of shipping the food, which mainly consists of soup, granola, dried fruit and trail mix.
“The food was loaded on a train before it was freighted to Florida and then put on a ship to Saint-Marc,” Bowman said. “While it was the most expensive route, it was the quickest way to get it there.”
Last year, the church sent similar shipping containers to South Africa and Liberia.
“This is an immediate effort to help the victims in Haiti,” Bowman said.
As of this week, the death toll in Haiti is at 212,000, with an estimated 300,000 injured, according to the Government of Haiti Civil Protection. More than 1.2 million people are living in spontaneous settlements.
Bowman and team of six people left Thursday, Feb. 11, and will stay two weeks in Saint-Marc, a city north of Port-au-Prince, the capital. The flight was donated by Angel Flights, which ordinarily offers transportation for families that are financially strapped but need to travel for medical services.
“We’ll be setting up a soup kitchen, doing food and water distribution, and erecting temporary shelter,” Bowman said.
Bowman said his team will also help set up a base in Haiti that will provide immediate support for displaced Haitians.
“It will help with medical, transportation and food,” he said.
Bowman, who moved to Scotts Valley from Orange County two years ago, said he expects the experience will create a whole new sense of priorities.
“I’m probably going to get wrecked,” Bowman said. “I don’t think I could’ve gone in the last month. Being a part of search and recovery would have been hard to handle, hard to see.
“I want to help be a part of assisting the survivors, want to pray with them and meet their spiritual needs. But you can’t meet a spiritual need without meeting a physical need, and that’s what we want to focus on right now.”
More ways to help Haiti
Crusade for Crutches
Since the earthquake in Haiti, there are more than 50,000 amputees who need crutches or canes. Drop off new or used crutches or canes at any Santa Cruz County fire station until March 31.
For information: Lori, 831-251-2451;
or Gloria, 831-438-5171
Tents for Haiti
Donate new tents or used tents in good condition to fill the urgent need for shelter, protection from mosquitoes and privacy for displaced Haitians. For shipping purposes, please package tents in their original containers or similar boxes and make sure all parts are included.
Donations will be accepted through Sunday, Feb. 14, at Santa Cruz County fire stations.
Cash and check donations
Donations may be made online at www.Haiti4Him.com or www.deltaministries.com under “tent donation.” Checks should be made out to Delta Ministries. One-hundred percent of all donations will go directly to the people of Haiti to meet their needs.
For information: Shelly, 438-1312
Local fire stations
Felton
131 Kirby St.
831-335-4422
Ben Lomond
9430 Highway 9
831-336-5495
Boulder Creek
13230 Highway 9
831-338-7222
Zayante
7700 E. Zayante Road
831-335-5100
Cal Fire Bonny Doon
13575 Empire Grade
831-426-1610
