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David Cushworth, who coordinates the church's Delaware-based Urban Life ministry, says people began to give money for supplies as soon as they heard about the attack, including the church's pastor, Carl Keyes, his wife, Donna, and the worship pastor and church secretary—most of the church's staff.

"Everyone immediately dug into their wallets and got their credit cards and checkbooks," he says. Meanwhile, Cushworth got on the phone to request donations. "While they're spending money, I'm making phone calls [to raise money]," he says. "We were borrowing money, just trying to get some funds into the situation there."

The church has purchased a wide variety of items, from baby clothes and dog food to gloves, boots, masks, and gallons of saline solution for emergency workers. The church has also supplied paper, pens, and other office supplies to centers where people are filing information about their missing loved ones.

Although initial efforts were rushed and scattershot, Glad Tidings has since become a central place where firefighters, police officers, and other relief workers are calling to get needed supplies. Glad Tidings is working closely with other churches and agencies like the Red Cross and Convoy of Hope to provide for needs that change hourly.

At least two or three times a day, says spokeswoman Nina Shelton, volunteers meet with people from other charities and emergency services. "We sit down and say 'What is your need today?' Then we run around like little ants to get it done."

Supported by thousands of dollars that have poured in during the last nine days—including several thousand dollars from Christian ministries—and staffed by about 300 volunteers, the church can provide supplies for relief workers within an hour of the requests, often coordinating the efforts on cell phones given to the church by Verizon Wireless.

Some volunteers have come from as far away as California, including three clergy who are trained in grief counseling. Others include five men from Louisiana, who have used their experiences in organizational management to direct the volunteers, and a small group of Michigan residents who offered the services of their pickup trucks.

Teams visit local firehouses and police stations to gather with those who would like to pray. Others take water to police officers who are tired from extended shifts.

The church is using the donations to help individuals as well as other organizations. Volunteers learned about a woman who had lost her job because of the destruction. Worse, Shelton says, last Tuesday was supposed to be the woman's payday. "The next day following that, we gave her the net equivalent of her paycheck," Shelton says.

Having cleared the initial aftermath of the attacks, Shelton says, the church is setting up programs to help with long-term needs.

For example, Glad Tidings plans to start an "Adopt a Family" program, through which a church will take the responsibility of meeting a family's physical, financial, prayer, and psychological needs. The church is also raising funds for the families of flight attendants killed in the four plane crashes and a payroll fund to meet the needs of those who have lost their jobs. The church has also received funds from the local Assemblies of God district to help affected families in the denomination's churches.

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September (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45