Illinois: One year after the November tornado outbreak
Megan Brandsrud Pictured: Damage in Washington, Ill., caused by November 2013 tornadoes. Augustino/FEMA One year ago, on Nov. 17, 2013, a storm system that consisted of 73 tornadoes moved through the Midwest. Illinois was severely impacted—the tornado system that...
Ebola Outbreak: Food assistance in Liberia
Megan Brandsrud (Photo courtesy of Lutheran World Federation) The Ebola outbreak in West Africa continues to expand. There have now been more than 13,560 cases of infected persons and more than 4,950 deaths. While the disease itself continues to...
Typhoon Haiyan – One Year Later
Megan Brandsrud (Photo: Participants in a cash-for-work program help clean up debris in Tacloban, a city in the Philippines province of Leyte. ACT/Paul Jeffrey) On Nov. 8, 2014, Typhoon Haiyan, known locally as Typhoon Yolanda, crashed into the central...
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...