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November 7, 2003: UMCOR workers near Monrovia will begin to distribute a railcar's worth of health kits, school kits, layettes and used clothing on Monday, November 10. The shipment-- assembled by United Methodist volunteers at UMCOR Sager Brown Depot-- arrived in the Liberian capital in response to a call for basic necessities. John Distefano, acting head of mission for UMCOR NGO in Liberia, explained the plans in an email. "We are starting distribution with a group of Indian Catholic sisters who operate a hospice for HIV/AIDS children and their mothers," he wrote. "Then the container will move to the camp at Fendel, where there are nearly 7,000 internally displaced persons." UMCOR is grateful for your prayers for both recipients and workers. Your generous donation to Advance #150300, Liberia Emergency, will help will enable further relief and recovery projects in Liberia.
"One thing with a fire that's so difficult," says a disaster recovery worker in Southern California, "is that often nothing is salvageable. These homes are burnt right down to the ground." UMCOR's emergency grant to the California-Pacific Annual Conference is helping in the midst of such loss. United Methodist pastors in the San Diego and Claremont areas attended workshops on ministering to persons affected emotionally and spiritually. You can participate in these efforts with your prayers and generous contributions to UMCOR's Advance for Domestic Disaster Response #901670. Designate your gift for "California Wildfires." An UMCOR grant to the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference will assist relief workers in Washington state. They face a long task, clearing up the millions of dollars in damage caused by October floods that swept away houses and possessions in the Skagit River Valley. By giving to Domestic Disaster Response Advance #901670 and designating your gift for "Washington Floods," you can join other United Methodists in recovery efforts in the isolated rural area near the British Columbia border.
Two kinds of "hands-on" ministries continue to be important to people in Texas and the Eastern Seaboard, which were raked by flood and hurricane this fall. One, if you can participate directly in cleanup efforts, call the UMCOR Volunteer Hotline, 1-800-918-3100. Or, if your church group can donate flood buckets-- supplies volunteers use to clean flood-damaged sites-- you can find the specifications online or call 1-800-814-8765. UMCOR is also grateful for generous donations to Hurricanes 2003, Advance #982438 that will extend your heart and hands to those who need help the most in all these areas devastated by flood and hurricane.
With no political solution in sight, the suffering in the Holy Land continues. Many families in the city of Bethlehem, with its 60% unemployment levels and continued travel restrictions, are considering abandoning their ancestral homes and lands. For the holidays the Shepherd Society and Bethlehem Bible College are offering hope and comfort to 500 families and individuals in Bethlehem by handing out food baskets at Christmas. These will not only provide needed food but will help recipients know that they have not been forgotten by their sisters and brothers in the church overseas. The cost of one basket is $50 and a Christmas message will be included in each. Please help provide a family in Bethlehem with a Christmas basket by giving to Middle East Emergency, Advance #601740-- and designate "Christmas Food Basket."
Support UMCOR's programs by sending Christmas cards to friends and family. Sets of twelve cards (four designs) and envelopes can be ordered for $10.00 plus shipping-- only $2 for orders up to $20. Two series of cards are available-- one based on scripture from Isaiah 35, the other on mothers and children. Look for a chart of shipping charges and an order form online or call 1-800-554-8583 to place your order.
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.
