Churches, Warrior Network collecting items for Houston

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - Several Shreveport churches are teaming up with The Warrior Network to collect supplies for families hardest hit by Harvey.

One of those is Riverpark Church, 3232 E. 70th St. in Shreveport.

The site in the former Hamel's Park near the Jimmie Davis Bridge is where people can drop off supplies being collected between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. through Friday.

Among items being accepted are paper towels, gloves, utility knives, garbage bags, bleach, wipes, rags, sponges and mops.

The donated goods will be placed in an 18-wheeler that will be driven to Houston next week.

At this time, the floodwaters are too high for the tractor-trailer rig to get into the city.

Riverpark Church already has a crew in Houston helping with boat rescues.

Lead pastor Mark Briggs is among those who have spent the past few days there saving stranded residents. The team rescued 100 people Monday alone.

Briggs told his son Marcus that the images in Houston are indescribable.

"Everything that the media has said about it, he said double it. It's way worse than what it's even being portrayed as.

"So we really can't know how bad it is until the waters go down. But he said it looks really bad."

Riverpark Church has a deeper connection to Houston. The congregation helped start up a church there called Hope City, which now has nearly 10,000 members.

"With having another church down there that we helped plant, it's kind of like you've got to get down there and help your friends and family," Marcus Briggs said. "And that's what we want to do.

"I literally have family down there. We're just glad to know that people are being rescued. People are being saved and we're able to get down in the post-relief efforts."

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