Help for Pastor Dan Halley

Photo above:  (left to right) Covenant OPC member Jim Flanagan and deacon Scott Cormier along with Presbytery of the South Diaconal Committee Chairman and deacon at Reformation OPC, Oviedo, FL, Mark Cerasale talking through the needs at the Halley’s home. 

Help for Pastor Dan Halley

Dan Halley, pastor of Bay Haven OPC in Tampa, Florida, and his family have experienced significant damage to their one-story home due to flooding from Hurricane Milton, which struck Florida just over a week ago. The home took in approximately six inches of water, wicking up the drywall and soaking the home’s furniture. Jim Flanagan, a retired flood remediation specialist, and member of Covenant OPC, New Bern, NC is in Tampa surveying the damages and overseeing the start of the remediation process in the Halley’s home as well as a few other Bay Haven member homes which sustained some water damage. 

The full scope and timeline of the Halley’s home restoration project is being determined and tentative plans are currently being sketched out, so please stay tuned for future needs.

For now, Dan and his family are temporarily staying with a church family but are in need of a more permanent housing situation for the duration of the restoration—possibly up to six months. Do you know of anyone in the Tampa area who may have a short-term rental to house their family of 6? The Halleys would prefer to stay within about a 30-minute drive from their current home so the kids can continue with their extracurricular activities. If you know of an available home for rent, please contact Presbytery of the South Diaconal Committee chairman, Mark Cerasale: mwcerasa@gmail.com; text or call: 407-484-8563. 

We will pass on information about other needs as they become known. The OPC Committee on Diaconal Ministries is assisting the Presbytery of the South’s Diaconal Committee with this effort, as well as the Presbytery of the Southeast as they determine their participation in Hurricane Helene efforts. OPC Disaster Response considers the two Florida hurricanes (Helene and Milton) as separate efforts, as they are being led by two different OPC presbyteries.

(Image above)  Some of the contents of Pastor Dan Halley’s house in the foreground, after Hurricane Milton brought six inches of floodwater throughout his family’s home, seen in the background.

Pastor Dan Halley’s home has been severely damaged and is now being assessed while remediation work is being done. This effort is being led by the deacons of Bay Haven OPC and the Presbytery of the South’s Diaconal Committee (PSODC), with the support of OPC Disaster Response. An OPC “2024 Hurricanes Fund” has been established to aid Pastor Halley and others affected by Hurricane Milton, Helene (and any other hurricanes that may come along before the end of the year.)