November 23, 2004
Sudan: Team of Five Will Lead UMCOR Sudan Aid
By mid-December UMCOR expects to have a team of five workers on the ground in Sudan, following one of the few independent assessments to be allowed by the government of Sudan. UMCOR will extend its efforts with displaced persons inside South Darfur, one of the three regions in Western Sudan torn by conflict. The agency also expects to employ 15-20 Sudanese in its initial efforts centering on the need to deliver emergency supplies, ward off famine, and eventually return people to their homes. Though more than 70 humanitarian agencies have registered in Sudan, only a few currently have projects in South Darfur. Last May, General Conference delegates directed the church to provide aid for what has been termed the world's worst humanitarian disaster. Your gift to Sudan Emergency, UMCOR Advance #184385, will assist this response in a meaningful way.
United States: Hurricane Recovery Will Be Long, Slow Process
Disaster workers and volunteers in the southeast United States hope for a future where more robust buildings will minimize hurricane damage. But, for now, people in the affected regions of Florida are still in recovery, say case managers working with UMCOR and the state's annual conferences. Temporary shelters have emptied but many people who lost their homes have relocated away from the area or are bunking with family and friends. At one organizing meeting, nearly every volunteer around the table had lost a home or sustained damage. Still, volunteers have worked over a million hours to clear debris, secure tarps on leaking roofs, replace missing shingles, and tear out moldy carpet. Some have offered simply the comfort of an attentive ear. Group work camps and volunteer teams are mobilizing for spring and summer rebuilding activity. Insurance industry spokespersons have ranked this season's storms among the top ten worst in the past 25 years. Please remember these friends in prayers, and give generously to UMCOR Advance #982410, Hurricanes 2004.
Have a Heart: Transform a Life With an UMCOR Alternative Gift
UMCOR's Christmas Wish List puts some of our ongoing projects into "gift" sizes. For instance, one dollar will provide a hot meal for a Haitian school child (UMCOR Advance #418790). For $440 you could replace a zinc roof on a family home damaged in the long civil war in Liberia (UMCOR Advance #150300). A new bulletin insert that describes all sorts of alternative gifts is ready for you to download and print locally.
Your chocolate and coffee-loving friends will enjoy UMCOR's fair trade brew. You can order coffee, tea, cocoa, and other fair trade products online from UMCOR's partner Equal Exchange. Help fund the fair trade program and combine immediate food crisis relief with long-term solutions by giving to UMCOR Advance #982920 Hunger/Poverty Program. Learn more about the UMCOR Coffee Project.
Delight a child somewhere-- like Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Haiti-- with a school kit. You can find instructions for making kits and a pattern for the school bag on UMCOR's web site. Or consider a cash gift of $12 per kit. UMCOR will use your gift to buy materials so volunteers can assemble kits to be shipped to the most vulnerable children when the need arises. UMCOR Advance #901440, Material Resource Ministry, designate "School Kits."
India: UMCOR Provides Financial Aid for Flood Relief
An early October rainstorm continues to hang on in the West Bengal region of India. Six weeks of steady rain have disrupted the lives of more than 30,000 families in Assam. UMCOR's partner, Church's Auxiliary for Social Action, is providing food, clothing, blankets and cooking utensils. Grants have enabled CASA to expand its outreach but more work remains. Please consider a generous donation to UMCOR Advance #274305, South Asia Emergency.
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.