Click to skip to content.

 UMCOR is part of the General Board of Global Ministries.

Skip plain text format.

The UMCOR Hotline

August 30, 2005

In Today's Hotline:
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama: UMCOR Responds to Hurricane Katrina
UMCOR Sager Brown: Reaching Out to New Orleans Refugees
Urgent Need: Health Kits and Flood Buckets
Zimbabwe: Reaching Displaced People
Sudan: Crops Flourish at Sites in South Darfur

LOUISIANA, MISSISSIPPI, AND ALABAMA: UMCOR RESPONDS TO HURRICANE KATRINA

UMCOR is responding to the catastrophic damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. While the extent of the damage is just now unfolding, as it will over the next several days, UMCOR is beginning its response.

Disaster Response Coordinators are meeting to coordinate their efforts to make damage assessments, set up volunteer efforts, and distribute relief supplies. UMCOR Domestic Disaster Response executive, Tom Hazelwood will arrive in Jackson, MS, this week to assist in the disaster recovery process. “As the storm clears and the media focuses on the major metropolitan areas affected by Katrina, UMCOR will be focusing on its mission to seek out the people left most vulnerable by the storm who often live in outlying rural areas,” says Hazelwood. “We seek to help people who might be otherwise overlooked.”

Please give generously to UMCOR Advance #982523, Hurricanes 2005 Global, to help thousands recover from this devastating hurricane.

UMCOR SAGER BROWN: REACHING OUT TO NEW ORLEANS REFUGEES

The UMCOR Sager Brown Depot normally ships relief supplies to places where disasters are occurring. Now, no postage is necessary to reach those most in need. Located in Baldwin, LA, UMCOR Sager Brown is now in the same area as many displaced people from New Orleans. Although the Depot is not acting as a shelter itself, it donated cots for people to have a place to sleep and is distributing health kits to those who need them.

URGENT NEED: HEALTH KITS AND FLOOD BUCKETS

UMCOR has identified an urgent need for both health kits and flood buckets following Hurricane Katrina. These collections of everyday items help families recover during the early days after a major disaster. The health kits contain items such as a toothbrush, wash cloth, and soap. The flood buckets contain items like gloves, household cleaners, and bleach to help people clean their homes to make them livable again.

For information on how to assemble and send these important items, please visit UMCOR’s website: gbgm-umc.org/umcor/print/kits

To donate money toward purchasing the items in these kits you can give to UMCOR Advance #901440, Material Resource Ministry.

ZIMBABWE: REACHING DISPLACED PEOPLE

In recent weeks, the situation of thousands who were displaced through Zimbabwe’s urban clean-up campaign, Operation Restore Order has worsened. Residents were cleared from transit camps and other areas of shelter, such as churches. This has further complicated efforts to help those who are in need of assistance. UMCOR is participating in a coordinated response through faith-based agencies in Zimbabwe to care for the thousands of displaced people.

GBGM General Secretary, the Rev. Randy Day issued a Mission Letter on Zimbabwe about the United Methodist response to this ongoing crisis in Zimbabwe saying, “We are working in faith and spiritual solidarity with the Zimbabwean church to sustain the existing ministries of preaching and service. We are attempting to expand humanitarian ministries in the light of both the food crisis and the enormous number of homeless people.” You can read the letter in its entirety at gbgm-umc.org.

Give generously to UMCOR Advance #199456, Zimbabwe Emergency, and help our sisters and brothers in need.

SUDAN: CROPS FLOURISH AT SITES IN SOUTH DARFUR

About 15,000 uprooted Darfurians will benefit when crops on several farms near Al Daein, South Darfur, are harvested, UMCOR head of mission Jane Ohuma this week told a delegation of four persons visiting from the Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church. Farms created with a gift from the Tipp City, Ohio, congregation, are flourishing, with the promise of food for immediate needs and next year's plantings. There are some 5,200 families participating in the farms with about 5 to 7 people in each family.

Earlier this spring UMCOR workers supplied seeds, tools, and training. The delegation, together with several UMCOR staff members, are touring the farms as well as a reception center built by UMCOR workers at Al Ferdous, a camp for displaced persons. Conflict, drought, and movements of tens of thousands of people have heightened the urgency of sustainable programs in this part of Sudan. The humanitarian needs are very urgent. Your continued prayers and generous gifts to UMCOR Advance #184385, Sudan Emergency, will assist in a meaningful way.

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.

Get the free UMCOR Hotline
Telephone: 1-800-841-1235; Web: http://gbgm-umc.org/UMCOR-Hotline/
Email: http://list.gbgm-umc.org/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=umcor-hotline

BE SURE TO RECEIVE OUR HOTLINE EMAILS. MAKE UMCOR YOUR BUDDY! Some Internet Service Providers like AOL, Yahoo!, Hotmail, and Juno use email filtering software that allows you to add email addresses to a "buddy," "trusted," "safe," or approved list. Please add umcor@gbgm-umc.org to your list so that our messages don't end up in "junk mail" or the "trash."

Featured Photos
United Methodist Committee on Relief

Katrina satellite view

Satellite Image: Hurricane Katrina pounded the Gulf Coast on Monday. Relief efforts are underway. Credit: NOAA

UMCOR SagerBrown

UMCOR Sager Brown Depot Credit: UMCOR

These beams from UMCOR will support roofs on new homes

Sudan: A woman plants peanuts. Photo: Paul Jeffrey/UMCOR

More About UMCOR's Work