Our History
PHASE I : Out of the Darkness
As Hurricane Katrina approached the Gulf Coast in August of 2005, two churches - Christian Life Church in Orange Beach, AL and Genesis Church from Foley - joined forces and arrived in the town of Waveland, MS just three days after Katrina made landfall. Waveland was what became known as "ground zero" for Hurricane Katrina, and the destruction from the direct hit was unimaginable. The intentions of the churches was to provide for the immediate needs of people in the community for a short period of time. Upon arrival, they found that no one else had yet arrived to help these communities.
Within a couple of weeks, what had begun as a few people from Alabama seeking to serve the Lord by serving food to hungry people turned into a full-blown relief organization, occupying 60,000 square feet of tent space in a Kmart parking lot. The tents were transformed into a store, a restaurant, a clothes distribution warehouse, and a bunk area for volunteers. From August to November of 2005, it is estimated that over 13 million dollars worth of food, fuel, and supplies were used to operate the facility and given to the community - all free of charge. At the peak of operation, what had become known as "Camp Katrina" was feeding approximately 5,000 to 6,000 meals per day to the community.
PHASE II : New Foundations
By the end of November 2005, the organization saw the need to transition from feeding and providing supplies for the community to assist in the gutting and rebuilding of homes. "Camp Katrina" moved out of the Kmart parking lot and began leasing what had formerly been a NAPA warehouse buildinig. Over the next 15 months, they began helping the community rebuild through the thousands of volunteers that continued to come from across North America. During this time, Camp Katrina began to focus not only on the material needs of the community through rebuilding, but also on the spiritual needs of the community through weekly Bible studies. In 2006, it was decided that for the ministry to continue, the organization needed a long-term plan. It was then that the leadership of Camp Katrina decided to hand over the reigns of leadership to the Christian and Missionary Alliance and become an official church plant, continuing with a focus of relief work and rebuilding.
PHASE III : Eternal Hope
As the Christian and Missionary Alliance took leadership of Camp Katrina, the ministry transitioned into two smaller parts of a larger entity. The relief side of the organization, now named "Christian Life Center," has also birthed a church plant of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, renamed "Christian Life Church" In February of 2007, CLC purchased a permanent residence in Waveland and continues to serve the neeeds of the community by helping to rebuild through the many volunteers that continue to come from around the nation. Christian Life Church also remains a strong light in the darkness through their Sunday morning services, Tuesday Bible studies, WednesdayCoffee House, Friday Youth Nights, Saturday Free Movie and various other forms of outreach in which they are working to establish community.
