MFI Media Support Team
The MFI Media Support Team and MST Center exist to offer hospitality and a hand of friendship to the news crews. The Support Team, media professionals themselves, is on location with them, helping them cope with the emotional and physical challenges.
This is the need our MFI MST has met in past years. We’ve been on location in past years to support the Media covering such tragic events as the Oklahoma City bombing, Columbine, Virginia Tech, Katrina, and 9/11 in New York City and Washington DC as well as the Atlanta Olympic Bombing.
Oso LANDSLIDE
On March 22nd, 2014, our own community suffered incredible tragedy as a landslide took out the town of Oso, Washington , including major arterial US highway 530. The towns of Darrington and Arlington are also greatly affected. While those living in the Stillaguamish River Valley are known to be resilient and self sufficient, the sheer size of the disaster is hard to grasp. In this brief interview with CBS Evening News, Pastor Bob explains the gravity of the tragedy.
Director’s Report
September 21, 2014 Pastor Bob has written an updated detailed report with more photos. CLICK HERE
September 8, 2014 Pastor Bob has returned safely from Israel. Thank you for your prayers and support.
Pastor Bob with CBN Staff
Overlooking Jerusalem READ MORE
As North Bureau reporter for Seattle’s KING 5 News Jake Whittenberg shared with his former station in Billings, Montana Q2, “There’s been a lot of media fatigue, a lot of people that are worried about the way the sensitive story was going to be covered,” he said,
“These people are going to be changed forever. And we’ll always remember them,” he said. “That sounds really emotional and that sounds kind of cheesy but my life as a journalist is forever changed because just the size of the story and the impact this has had on these small communities. I’ll never forget this.”
Who is there to help the media?
The victims and first responders have many support teams who offer assistance, food, counseling, housing and encouragement.
There is another group however, in the trenches as well, but often overlooked.
The “Media” – the news crews, cameramen, reporters, anchors, technicians. They work under difficult circumstances. They are the first to the scene, the closest to the event – hearing the details of sorrow and anguish – feeling the emotion, fear and discomfort – yet, trying to remain professionally objective and coherent in spite of appalling trauma and disaster.
Their job is to gather the facts of the incident and report the news quickly, fairly and completely to the waiting world. And yet, the media are often seen as fixtures, as non-entities, even though behind the lens of their camera, the tears often flow. Their job is to gather the facts of the incident and report the news quickly, fairly and completely to the waiting world.
April 29th UPDATE: Aerial Photo courtesy of AP images
41 confirmed dead, 2 remain missing. Primitive roadway opens today, preventing
the 90 minute one way detour between Arlington and Darrington.
April 2nd UPDATE: MFI Media Support Team at the OSO Mudslide – Notes from Pastor Bob
I had the honor of accompanying a selected group of reporters to the Oso mudslide site.
MFI’s MST has been on location at the Media Room in Arlington since last week, providing encouragement,
hospitality, coffee and snacks. READ MORE
Slide area. Mud and dirt at the base of the mountain is about 70 feet deep. At the front where items were pushed, it is 20 to 30 feet deep.
They are carefully scraping layers of dirst away to the original ground level.
You can get an idea of the size of the slide area by looking at the tractor and backhoe and the man just right of center.
You can see the logs that laid down so that they could get machinery over the deep mud. They used to call that a ‘courderoy road.’
Where we’ve been able to provide hospitality for the Media covering the Landslide disaster.
The Media has been very appreciative of having a place to put up their feet, have a hot cup of coffee, some food and a listening ear from one of our MST (Media Support Team) members.
You can see the logs that laid down so that they could get machinery over the deep mud. They used to call that a ‘courderoy road.’
Love from the people of Oso, Darrington and Arlington.
Messages of love from the children of Oso, Darrington and Arlington.
PO Box 82685
Kenmore, WA 98028
Email: MFI@usa.net
Phone: 206-617-7574
Fax: 425-488-8531
Contact us for opportunities to fellowship with other media and entertainment industry people!
If you'd like more information about MFI, or if you need counseling, please reach out to us. We're here for believers and non-believers alike.
MFI, incorporated by the state of California in 1987, is recognized as a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization. As such contributions are fully tax deductible. MFI is funded by private contributions from individuals who believe in this vital ministry of reaching ‘to the media, through the media.' DONATE