January 24, 2003: People on the island of Guam continue to recover from the effects of Supertyphoon Pongsona. UMCOR disaster response personnel are working with the California-Pacific Conference on appropriate assistance to those affected. Please help our brothers and sisters on Guam by giving to Advance #901190-3.
The latest toll from the earthquake that struck western and central Mexico on January 21 is 29 dead, 300 injured and 30,000 homeless. The epicenter of the quake was in the state of Colima, where there was heavy damage to homes. Fernanco Moreno, the state governor, said most of the people who perished were crushed and suffocated when the walls of their houses collapsed on them. He has declared Colima a disaster area. Staff from the Mexico City office of UMCOR's ecumenical partner Church World Service are conducting an assessment in Colima today. Please give to International Disaster Response, Advance #982450-8, which enables our rapid response to emergencies such as this one.
UMCOR is making a special appeal for help in the recovery process for people affected by the November storms in Louisiana. The number of people and amount of property involved is extensive and widespread. The victims are poor. Little media attention and only minimal response has been generated. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has received more than 190,000 registrations. Most registrants' claims are too small to qualify for federal assistance. Because the need is so great and as a matter of justice, UMCOR, in cooperation with the Louisiana Annual Conference, continues to appeal for help under Advance #901518-2.
Harietta Reynolds, who has just completed her term as the interim director of the Sager Brown Depot, laments the fact that the depot's supply of material resources is way down since the 9/11 tragedy. The most widely distributed are health kits, followed by school kits, layette kits, and sewing kits. The depot can also use bulk items for kits. Please help UMCOR continue to provide these essential items to people in need in the United States and around the world. Information can be obtained by calling 1-800-554-8583 or by visiting the kits website at http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/kits.cfm.
UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out more about UMCOR's ministries, please visit umcor.org. You can donate to any project by placing a contribution in the offering plate at a local United Methodist church; by sending a check to UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068; or by calling 1-800-554-8583, where credit card donations are accepted. UMCOR is exempt from tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors.
And, please pray for those who are hungry, displaced, sick or in poverty because of these and other natural and human-made disasters, and for the workers who minister to them.
