We often speak about our domestic disaster response work being done through a network of affiliates. The following is a great example of what this looks like in practice.

Lutheran Family and Children’s Services (LCFS) of Missouri, a Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) affiliate, was not directly affected by Hurricane Sandy. Yet because of the strength of the LDR network which includes our membership in coalitions like, Coordinated Assistance Network (CAN), a member of their disaster response team has been able to help in the response. The data manager for LFCS’s Disaster Case Management Program, Don Emge, was asked by the national staff at CAN to help with development and case manager training.

Using his experience from working in Missouri, which has been affected by a series of disasters including the tornado in Joplin last May, Don is working with the Red Cross and FEMA to mobilize efforts after Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy. He is helping to initiate new case management programs up and refining training procedures so that as many as a hundred new case managers can be up and running. He is also keeping an eye on making sure the work they set up now can easily transition into the long-term recovery efforts.

So in a short while Don’s two week deployment will come to an end and he will return to Missouri to again engage in his good work there. Yet, the effects of his time will be felt, though perhaps not recognized, for years to come. And so the body of Christ works, through the relationships of a network, going when the call is raised, and working in quiet ways to bring hope and healing.

We thank Don and all those countless others who are a part of this network, through your actions, financial support and prayers. May God continue to bless this work.

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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 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.

Hurricane Sandy Bulletin Insert

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.