Raleigh church provides men, resources for disaster relief

"It's a celebration of how God used this church to respond immediately" to tornado victims, said Lin Honeycutt, a member of the church and a volunteer with the North Carolina Baptist Men.

The Baptist Men are trained in disaster relief efforts and were one of the leading groups sending resources and volunteers into tornado-ravaged areas. Of the group's 13,000 volunteers statewide, 68 are members of Highland Baptist. 

"To have that many trained volunteers in one church is enormous," Honeycutt said.

During two church services Sunday morning, those volunteers remembered the tornado aftermath. From cutting down trees, securing houses, covering roofs and removing debris from homes and yards, every Baptist Men-trained volunteer became a jack of all trades in the storm aftermath.

Volunteers say the church has invested more than $100,000 in tools and equipment for disaster relief, including three recovery trailers.

Glenn Jackson attended Highland Baptist Sunday morning to say "thank you" after his home was hit by a tornado last year.

"We had men out there for weeks," he said. "It was just a daunting task."