Years After Her “I’m Actually an Atheist” Moment, a Tragedy Survivor is Helping Others Recover

[rug]

May 20, 2016 '
by Hemant Mehta

It was three years ago today when, following a devastating tornado in Oklahoma, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer went to the scene to interview people affected by the tragedy.

He eventually spoke to a woman named Rebecca Vitsmun whose family was okay but whose home was not. At the end of the interview, Blitzer asked her if she thanked God for getting out of house in time… and that led to this incredible exchange:

BLITZER: Well, you’re blessed. Brian, your husband, is blessed. [Your son] Anders is blessed… and I guess you gotta thank the Lord, right? Do you thank the Lord? For that split-second decision?

VITSMUN: I… I… I’m… I’m actually an atheist… (Laughs)

It was a wonderful reminder that, even in the face of tragedy, not everyone resorted to religion to pull them through.

But in the process of cleaning up the damage, while there were certainly atheists helping out, Vitsmun saw a need for a more organized, coordinated effort. So she helped the Foundation Beyond Belief launch its Humanist Disaster Recovery teams. Earlier this year, they were on the ground in South Carolina, helping rebuild homes in the wake of Hurricane Joaquin.

In a video marking her anniversary of that Blitzer moment, FBB and Vitsmun made a video demonstrating the work the HDR teams have done so far:

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2016/05/20/years-after-her-im-actually-an-atheist-moment-a-tragedy-survivor-is-helping-others-recover/

[mountain grammy]

2. K & R for this good post..

quit praying and get busy!

[rug]

4. Good suggestion.

https://foundationbeyondbelief.org/hdrteams

Although if you can whistle while you work, you can pray too if you want.

[valerief]

3. "Amen!", says this atheist. nt

[FailureToCommunicate]

5. The Lord works in (not) so mysterious ways...

So it's raining really hard. There's a Believer living beside a river and it starts to flood. The sheriff's deputies come by and tell him he should leave before the river cuts off the road.

"The Lord will save me," he tells them.

The river is up to the front porch and the some folks come by in a boat and tell him to hop in and they'll take him to safety.

"The Lord will save me," he tells them.

The water rises above the first floor and the man has to climb on his roof. The National Guard comes by in a boat and begs the man to come with them.

"The Lord will save me," he tells them.

The waters keep rising and the man is clinging to his chimney. A helicopter appears and lowers a rope, but he refuses to go, telling them "The Lord will save me."
Finally he is standing on top of the chimney and the river is still rising.

"Lord," he calls out, "Lord, why have you forsaken me?"

The sky splits open and a HUGE voice booms out... "I sent two boats and a helicopter... What more do you want?"


(Basically, believe, or not, all you want, but in the meantime, roll up your sleeves and help yourself or your neighbor.)

[GoneOffShore]

6. Good for her -

I usually go back to the Terry Pratchett quote -

“Gods prefer simple, vicious games, where you Do Not Achieve Transcendence but Go Straight To Oblivion; a key to the understanding of all religion is that a god's idea of amusement is Snakes and Ladders with greased rungs.”

[goldent]

7. Nice!

[stone space]

8. This is old-school pre-internet atheism as I've always known it.

In one short interview, Rebecca Vitsmun manages to knock down more than one stereotype regarding atheists that I've run across on the internet, both here in this forum, and elsewhere.

Wolf Blitzer: “You’ve gotta thank the Lord, right? Do you thank the Lord for that split-second decision?”

Rebecca Vitsmun: “I’m actually an atheist.”

Wolf Blitzer: “Oh, you are. All right. But you made the right call.”

Rebecca Vitsmun: “We are here, and I don’t blame anyone for thanking the Lord.”

Since I don't have cable, I guess that I'll have to thank the internet for bringing it to me.

[AtheistCrusader]

9. Thank you, Rug.

You've helped me identify a bonus charity this year. PP is still top of the list, but I will work these fine folks in. I remember her story, but I didn't know it had evolved beyond this.


And to add for your amusement, Wolf Blitzer is a moron:

[rug]

10. You're welcome. Is that Andy Richter?

[AtheistCrusader]

11. Yes, and Dana Delaney.