A new situation report giving an update on the situation in the northeaster United States and Caribbean as well as the ELCA’s response is now available. Please help us spread the word of how the ELCA is engaged in the response and what people can do to help.
Here is a link for your convenience: Hurricane Sandy Situation Report #2 (November 9, 2012)
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Gifts to ELCA Disaster Response allow the church to respond domestically and internationally in times of need. Donate now.
There is a new bulletin insert on the ELCA Disaster Response website sharing about our work and need following Hurricane Sandy. Please share it with your congregations.
As the newest member of the Lutheran Disaster Response team at ELCA churchwide office, I am in a unique position to appreciate the complex process and the “ecological system” of disaster response from various perspectives. I can easily put on the hat of a regular concerned citizen and a consumer of news during this time…and I do. In the last few days, I have been “devouring” news about every moment of Hurricane Sandy. The wrenching stories of our fellow citizen fighting for their lives through the stormy night, the epic winds, flooding and destruction, together with the heroic actions of the firefighters, police and national guard have kept me fixated on the TV and computer for hours on end. If that were the only hat I wore, I know Hurricane Sandy would be out of my mind when the next news cycle came around in a few days.
But as a part of the Lutheran Disaster Response team, I have the privilege to wear another hat, the hat of someone who is a part of a wider community which is determined to accompany affected individuals and communities on their road to recovery. The work we have done as a team in the churchwide office these last few days is not really what you would describe as “sexy”. We have spent a lot of time talking with folks who have been providing relief and care for others while also working through their own shock and loss; these are our church leaders as well as leaders of social ministry organizations affiliated with our church. We have participated in numerous conference calls with our national partners – the Red Cross, Salvation Army, NVOAD, FEMA, the Methodists and Presbyterians, just to name a few. In close collaborations with numerous units and departments within the churchwide organization, we are finding ways to refine our communication and fundraising strategies, and the list goes on. While we judiciously share resources with our affiliates on the ground to support their relief work as first responders, we are also preparing to embark upon the usually less dramatic yet crucial aspect of disaster response – long-term recovery.
It is indeed a privilege to be able to see and appreciate the disaster response process from multiple perspectives. Disaster response is not just what happens the few days or months after a disaster. Accompanying those affected on the road to recovery is a long and at times difficult process. We are very grateful that in our country we have an elaborate and developed system, which functions much like an “ecological” system; this system includes actors from all sectors – the public and private as well as faith-based organizations, civic societies and engaged citizens. We are appreciative that Lutheran Disaster Response is able to play a role in this system. While on a national level we specialize in long-term recovery, through our network of affiliates and churches around the country we are able to engage locally in actions immediately after a disaster.
Please join us in this ecological system of disaster response; for I believe that it is not simply a human ecological system, but is God’s ecology. For most of us this call is not for immediate action on the East Coast, as responding agencies work to stabilize the situation. Yet we can all be a part of this ecology in faith as ardent prayer warriors, as donors, and eventually as volunteers for long-term recovery.
And, please do not forget our sisters and brothers in the Caribbean, in areas of the world that do not have as extensive of a response system that we have in this country. Hurricane Sandy has played havoc on them as well. They too are in need of our prayers and resources. Thank You.
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Gifts to ELCA Disaster Response allow the church to respond domestically and internationally in times of need. Donate now.
A new situation report highlighting the ELCA’s response to Hurricane Sandy in the Caribbean and northeastern US is now available. Please help us share this update with your congregations and communities.
Hurricane Sandy Situation Report #1 (pdf)
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Gifts to ELCA Disaster Response allow the church to respond domestically and internationally in times of need. Donate now.
Greetings!
Our thoughts, prayers and best wishes go out to all those who were affected by Hurricane Sandy and the violent storms it caused. We grieve with those who lost loved ones and homes.
We at Lutheran Disaster Response are in contact with synods and affiliate organizations in areas impacted by Sandy. We have heard that congregations were damaged by the storm but we are waiting to share the information until we have a more complete list.
Yesterday afternoon we hosted a conference call with our LDR network coordinators to hear reports of the damages in their area and to begin planning how we will respond to the needs. In the midst of the reporting of affects from Sandy we also heard stories of Lutherans already doing important work, helping to clean up, providing pastoral care, feeding and sheltering those affected. It was a strong reminder that whenever Lutherans respond, that is Lutheran Disaster Response!
As we move through this phase of immediate relief and into the long-term recovery, please continue to check back and to share this information with your friends and family! As a church called to serve, the ELCA through Lutheran Disaster Response will continue to be present, for as long is as needed.
Gracious God, you are our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble. In the wake of Hurricane Sandy reveal your presence to those in the Caribbean and the eastern region of our country so that all may know your healing, hope, and love. As one community on earth bound together by your grace, inspire us to pray, serve, and help all those who suffer. Amen
Pastor Michael Stadie
Program Director, Lutheran Disaster Response
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Gifts to ELCA Disaster Response allow the church to respond domestically and internationally in times of need. Donate now.
This is Pastor Michael Stadie, Program Director for Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR).
Last week I returned from a week-long visit to the Minot, North Dakota area. As you know, the area was profoundly impacted by flooding in June of 2011. (Please see the previous blog post from Matthew Ley about the One-Year Anniversary events.)
While there, I had the opportunity to see the work going on at Hope Village, the volunteer and construction site for the rebuilding efforts by our affiliate, Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota (LSSND), and other partners. Shirley Dykshoorn is the LDR coordinator for LSSND. While the actual volunteer housing portion of Hope Village is going on hiatus, the work will continue through the winter months with volunteers staying at “satellite” sites—area congregations. Shirley and her staff are doing a great job working at making sure the volunteers and materials are coming together to efficiently help with the rebuilding process.
While progress is being made, there is still a great need for rebuilding; something that will continue for several more years. There is a special need for skilled construction workers, especially electricians and plumbers. And what is true in Minot is also true for most of the other reconstruction sites—more skilled laborers would help more families move back into their homes.
During my time there, I also made these observations:
Despite the challenges, there is hope shining through, literally. The New York Says Thank You Foundation work includes asking children to make “Stars of Hope.” Children from the Minot have made stars which been put on stakes and “planted” all around the area as a symbol of hope and encouragement. These multicolored stars not only brighten up the streets, they put a smile on the face of those driving through the areas still under construction as a reminder there is indeed hope, something that the people of Minot and the surrounding area live each day.