CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are helping to distribute food and provide temporary shelter for survivors of floods that resulted from severe storms in Virginia and West Virginia July 8-10.
The ELCA Domestic Disaster Response provided a $5,000 grant for Immanuel Lutheran Church, Bluefield, W.Va., and the community to help meet immediate needs, said Johanna Olson, assistant, Domestic Disaster Response. Lutheran Disaster Response, a ministry of the ELCA and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, provided $5,000 to support interfaith relief efforts," Olson said.
Two people have died, and more than 1,600 homes in those states have been damaged or destroyed as a result of the storm, according to the Rev. Gilbert B. Furst, director for Domestic Disaster Response, ELCA Division for Church in Society.
"Assessments are difficult because of washed-out bridges and roads, remote communities and contaminated water systems. Perhaps as many as 3,000 homes may have been damaged or destroyed," Furst said.
"Local volunteers are helping with clean-up efforts. Other needs will arise as response continues," said Furst.
Members of Immanuel Lutheran Church are attending to the needs of survivors in the community. On July 13, Furst met with the Rev. Meredith Patrick Williams, pastor for Immanuel Lutheran Church, who said the congregation is "busy digging out of the mud." Williams told Furst, "Our area is very poor. There is high unemployment and a lot of elderly folks."
Furst also met with the Rev. James F. Mauney, bishop of the ELCA Virginia Synod, Salem, and the Rev. Kenneth M. Ruppar, pastor for Lutheran Church of Our Saviour, Richmond, Va., and disaster coordinator for the ELCA Virginia Synod, to develop a strategy for disaster response.
The West Virginia Council of Churches will participate in recovery efforts, Olson said. The Rev. Ralph W. Dunkin, bishop of the ELCA West Virginia-Western Maryland Synod, Fairmont, W.Va., a member of the council, is working to help provide funding for an interfaith disaster coordinator, she said.
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DOMESTIC DISASTERS:
Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds for aid to survivors
of major disasters inside the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S.
Virgin Islands, please include:
ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
P.O. Box 71764
Chicago, Illinois 60694-1764
Credit card gift line: 1-800-638-3522
Credit card gifts via the Web: http://www.elca.org/disaster
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
