Ebola Outbreak – Awareness and Prevention in Sierra Leone
Megan Brandsrud As of Oct. 29, 2014, Sierra Leone has had 5,235 documented cases of Ebola and 1,500 documented deaths. However, the World Health Organization says these numbers could be severely underestimated. Ebola transmission continues to be persistent in...
Nebraska youth stands with New Jersey and continues Superstorm Sandy recovery
Megan Brandsrud (Pictured: Nebraska Synod youth sporting Lutheran Disaster Response volunteer shirts as they embark on their volunteer projects.) This July, more than 300 youth and chaperone volunteers from the ELCA Nebraska Synod ventured on a cross-country bus trip...
Iraq: Assistance for Displaced Populations
Megan Brandsrud Iraq has one of the largest populations of internally-displaced persons (IDPs) in the world. Recent dramatic events have seen armed groups take over large portions of the north and west of Iraq, driving many people from their homes...
Unaccompanied and Migrant Children: A safe and caring environment for refugee children
Megan Brandsrud During the past four years, the number of children migrating from Central America (mostly from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala) to the United States has been steadily increasing. More than 60,000 children have arrived so far this...
Ebola outbreak: “The church has to help”
Megan Brandsrud The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa is the largest and longest-lasting Ebola outbreak in recorded history. To further understand the scale of this disease, the Ebola outbreak is actually the first Ebola epidemic the world has experienced,...
Long-term recovery in progress following spring wildfires in California
Megan Brandsrud In May, a series of 9 wildfires broke out in San Diego County, Calif. Severe Santa Ana wind conditions and a heat wave played contributing factors in the spreading of the fires. By the time all of the...