Prepared to Care

 

When a tornado struck Enterprise, Ala., in March 2007, the members of Christ the King Lutheran Church were equipped to respond, bringing help and hope to the community.

Only 18 days before, two seminary interns had come to this small city to give a presentation at Christ the King on behalf of Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR). Prior to the presentation, many members of the congregation had never heard of LDR, a collaborative ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod.

The members of Christ the King started putting together their congregational plan, and several members agreed to serve on a disaster preparedness committee. Just over two weeks later, a devastating storm tore through the city, destroying two schools, leveling portions of downtown and residential areas, and killing eight high school students.

When Lutheran Disaster Response personnel arrived the next morning to begin assessing the situation, members at Christ the King were their first contacts. The church was soon named as the volunteer reception center for anyone coming to help, and within a month, nearly 4,000 volunteers participated in work projects around Enterprise.

Donations to ELCA Domestic Disaster Response fund hardship grants, spiritual and emotional care, disaster preparedness, volunteer coordination, and other relief and recovery efforts. ELCA Domestic Disaster Response works through Lutheran Disaster Response and its affiliates.