BALTIMORE — Once they heard about the collapse, the outreach team at Union Church reached out to Baltimore City officials, fire officials, and the Anne Arundel EMA office, asking them what the team could do.
The immediate need is food.
“The heart of our senior pastors, Pastor Stephen and Pastor Zai, is that we are able to mobilize all of our resources and to immediately spring into action to provide assistance wherever it is," says Angela Broadus.
So the team reached out to a nearby Chick-Fil-A and loaded up vans with 300 sandwiches, salads, chips, cookies, and drinks.
“One thing that we learned is they need something that is quick that's pick me up, that's hot and warm but they can keep on moving," she says.
On the other side of the bridge, John McAvoy, owner of the Dock of The Bay restaurant in Sparrows Point, also reacted quickly to get food to the first responders.
“Went down and gave them some boneless bites, some crab balls, pretzel bites and some french fries to give them something to let them know the community is here for them and we really appreciate all they are doing for us," says John McAvoy.
He says it was important for him to do something while they are out there trying to save lives.
“They had been out there for a couple of hours and it was really cool to see the smiles on their faces and the appreciation that they had," he says.
McAvoy also says he will continue to support first responders in any way he can as the work continues.
Angela Broadus says being there, watching all the emergency crews work, made her have even more appreciation for the first responders.
“When you are there and you are able to see the bridge literally miles away from where you are it just puts everything into perspective, and so being aware of the gravity of the situation helps us actually be more mindful even as were interacting with our first responders," says Broadus.
The outreach team went back on Wednesday, this time with breakfast and lunch, and it will keep going whenever the first responders need help.
“As we continue to get updates, we’re ready and positioned to mobilize our first response team to continue to go back out there," she says.
