FROM THE FIELD
In Today's Hotline:
US: FLOOD BUCKETS FOR THE MIDWEST
UMCOR is responding to floods caused by several storms and torrential rains in the Midwest over the past week. UMCOR Sager Brown shipped some 1,700 flood buckets filled with cleaning supplies and disaster response team members are preparing to go to Arkansas and some areas of Missouri to assist with clean-up.
As the rain continues this week pushing river levels higher - the threat of overflowing river banks remains for Arkansas and Missouri.
You can help the Midwest in their time of need by purchasing flood buckets which contain cleaning agents like bleach, disinfectant dish soap, laundry detergent, gloves, scrub brushes and more. These basic materials make a huge difference in recovery. Please send your gifts to UMCOR Material Resources Advance #901440 which will enable UMCOR to purchase the needed relief supplies.
UMCOR's Justice for Our Neighbors Program helps people in the midst of crisis and guides them through the confusing maze of US immigration law. One JFON Texas regional attorney helped a survivor of domestic violence in her time of distress. The woman fled from husband with her two children as he was threatening to take them if she tried to leave him. Today, she is safe and has received legal status to stay in the US and will soon be granted lawful permanent residence.
Most of JFON's clients are women and families with children. The majority of cases involve naturalization of immigrants and reuniting families. This ministry provides free, high-quality immigration services and a warm welcome to immigrants in our congregations and communities.
Continue to support JFON's work in the lives of people who have few advocates and seemingly no place to turn. Please give to Justice for Our Neighbors, UMCOR Advance #901285.
US: LIGHTEN THE BURDEN II EVENT
On April 22, The United Methodist Global AIDS Fund Committee will sponsor Lighten the Burden II, an HIV/AIDS event intended to heighten awareness among United Methodists about HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. The event will be held at First United Methodist Church in Fort Worth, Tex. from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, and will address the realities surrounding these diseases and how the United Methodist Church is responding.
Kay Warren, a two-time cancer survivor and wife of Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose-Driven Life," will be the keynote speaker to this day-long event. A personal testimony about living with HIV/AIDS will be shared by Shane Stanford, author and teaching pastor for Main Street UMC in Hattiesburg, Miss., and Dr. Cherian Thomas, executive secretary for GBGM's Health and Welfare will speak on how to access resources from the UM Global AIDS Fund.
For more details and to register, click here. You can also send your gifts of support to United Methodist Global AIDS Fund, UMCOR Advance #982345.
AFRICA: MALARIA DAY - APRIL 25
Ezequiel, 39, a translator and meeting planner for the Mozambique Initiative, a ministry of the Missouri Annual Conference, has malaria. His wife and four children also have malaria and sometimes the disease endangers their lives. Ezequiel survived one of these bouts after being rushed to an emergency room, but not everyone with malaria survives.
Malaria is one of the biggest killers in Africa. It accounts for nearly one in five deaths among children. With the help of UMCOR's Community-Based Malaria Control program, malaria is being avoided. The program is working to prevent malaria through education and training - equipping people who are most at risk. With the right information and tools such as using treated bed nets or eliminating stagnant water around the homes, the mosquito population is reduced, thereby removing the risk of this deadly disease.
April 25 is Africa Malaria Day. It's a day to remember the one million people who are killed each year by this preventable disease. Help combat malaria throughout Africa through your gifts to Community-Based Malaria Control, UMCOR Advance #982009.
UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out more about UMCOR's ministries, please visit umcor.org. You can donate to any project by placing a contribution in the offering plate at a local United Methodist church; by sending a check to UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068; or by calling 1-800-554-8583, where credit card donations are accepted. You can also give online at givetomission.org. UMCOR is exempt from tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors.
United Methodist Committee on Relief
General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church
Room 330, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115
Voice Phone: 1-212-870-3816; FAX: 1-212-870-3624
Email: umcor@gbgm-umc.org
Web: http://www.umcor.org
UMCOR. Be There. Be Hope.
UMCOR's mission is to alleviate human suffering-whether caused by war, conflict, or natural disaster-with open minds and hearts to all people.
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
