UMCOR, partners to respond to Bangladesh cyclone

By Linda Bloom*

NEW YORK (UMNS) — The United Methodist Committee on Relief will work with international partners to help survivors of the cyclone in Bangladesh.

As of Nov. 20, the death toll stood at 3,100 from powerful Cyclone Sidr, which struck the South Asian country Nov. 16. Many people living in the affected remote areas lost food supplies.

A full appeal is expected for aid to Bangladesh from Action by Churches Together, a partner agency, according to the Rev. Sam Dixon, UMCOR’s chief executive. UMCOR will contribute to ACT’s rapid response effort as well. ACT members currently in operation in the areas most affected by the cyclone include Christian Aid, Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh, Church of Banglandesh, KOINONIA and Lutheran Health Care Bangladesh.

ACT’s initial assistance of emergency food support ensured two meals a day for at least five days for such vulnerable groups as children, widows, the elderly or disabled and those without land in the five affected districts.

UMCOR also will work with its new partner, Muslim Aid, a British-based relief agency with an office in Bangladesh, to supply shelter, food and medical response. "This is an ideal opportunity for us to recognize the partnership," Dixon said.

According to the Muslim Aid Web site, the group is delivering water, food and medicines to areas most affected. Three Muslim Aid teams are working in Bagerhat (Morelganj and Shoronkhola), Patuakhali (in Mirzaganj, Khepupara and Kolapara) and Pirajpur.

In collaboration with its partners, Muslim Aid is deploying more than 400 volunteers to survey the damage, assess water and sanitation and shelter needs, install tube wells and sanitary latrines, and distribute food and medicines.

Food aid to survivors is among the most immediate concerns. Usha Mishra, a senior advisor at the U.N. World Food Programme, told The New York Times that food supplies were severely disrupted and that shelter is another big need, with an estimated 1 million people left homeless.

Weathering disasters
Cyclone Sidr is the South Asian country’s worst storm since a 1991 cyclone killed about 143,000 people. But Sidr is only the latest natural disaster for Bangladesh. In August, heavy rains and river flooding affected more than 9 million people, sending some 400,000 to temporary shelters and destroying crops. UMCOR worked with ACT partners on flood relief and supported Muslim Aid as it helped rebuild homes and distribute seeds and fertilizers to 4,300 survivors.

The United Methodist response to the Bangladesh cyclone will depend upon the amount of funds raised. Dixon said UMCOR’s international and domestic disaster response funds are low "and would benefit from contributions of United Methodists."

Contributions for Bangladesh can be made by check to UMCOR and dropped in local church collection plates or mailed directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Write "UMCOR Advance #202400, Bangladesh Emergency" on the check memo line. Credit card donations can be made at www.umcor.org or by calling (800) 554-8583.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

Dulac Station, Disaster Recovery Ministry of the Louisiana Conference, has an immediate opening for an “Individual Volunteer” with a paid stipend

Preferred dates:
November 15, 2007 to February 15, 2008

Scope of Work:
To act as a Project Assistant for the reconstruction work being done in Dulac, Louisiana, in response to needs created by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and years of systemic poverty. This person will answer directly to the Station Manager for Dulac.

Skills Required:
The individual must possess basic construction understanding, and have a positive track record in working with volunteers.
The individual must possess their own pick-up truck that they will be willing to use in material runs. The individual must also possess a valid driver’s license in one of the 50 US states, or an acceptable international drivers license, and have up-to-date auto insurance.

Compensation:
An apartment with basic utilities will be provided free-of-charge. Fuel reimbursement will be granted for the use of the pick-up truck. A stipend of $1,000.00 per month will be paid, pro-rated for less than a full month period of employment.
The individual applying for this position should not expect set days off. “Time off” will be granted each week as the schedule permits.

Location:
Dulac is a community in the bayou region of southern Louisiana, approximately 2 hours south west of New Orleans. November through February weather is mild.

To Apply:
Send resume along with names and contact information for at least 3 references (these should include people that know your abilities with regards to construction and volunteer inter-action) to johnpaulmcguire@bellsouth.net, or by post mail to John Paul McGuire, DRM Station Manager, 125 Coast Guard Rd., Dulac, LA 70353.

Flooded Midwest communities move toward recovery

Members of the Minnesota Annual (regional) Conference Early Disaster Response Team help with cleanup in Stockton, Minn., one of the many towns hit by flooding in August. A UMNS photo by Donald Anderson.

A UMNS Report
By Susan J. Meister*

Communities in southeastern Minnesota and southwestern Wisconsin continue to recover from the severe floods of last August with assistance from the United Methodist Committee on Relief.

"UMCOR is wonderful to work with," said Bille LaBumbard, a mission staff member with the denomination's Wisconsin Annual (regional) Conference. "They provide mentors and training to help us respond."

The churchwide agency is bringing its disaster relief experience to all phases of the flood recovery, according to Tom Hazelwood, head of UMCOR's domestic disaster response.

"Now that our involvement in the emergency phase is winding down, UMCOR will be a full partner with these annual conferences and other agencies active in disaster response as they plan their recovery," Hazelwood said.

UMCOR provided both annual conferences with emergency grants in the early phases of flooding at the request of Bishops Sally Dyck and Linda Lee.

Now that the initial emergency is over, UMCOR will help the conferences and affected communities establish long-term recovery ministries. Long-term recovery committees are being developed under guidelines from National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, with assistance from Christy Tate Smith, an UMCOR disaster response specialist.

UMCOR also has begun training case management staff to work with homeowners to write and execute their recovery plans. Case managers will develop relationships with survivors and connect them with helping organizations, especially for families who are uninsured or underinsured.

Minnesota response
More than 5,000 people in seven Minnesota counties have registered for assistance, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Minnesota Conference Early Disaster Response Team responded quickly to the cleanup effort, according to Anne Harvell, conference coordinator.

"Now we are in our planning phase," Harvell said. "United Methodists will participate with over 44 other organizations in the long-term process."

The town of Rushford was especially hard hit. Laura Deering, a member of both the town council and McKinley United Methodist Church in Winona, has been involved in the response since the storm dropped 17 inches of rain on her community.

"I have been amazed at all the groups that have shown up to help," she said. "And I am so appreciative of Christy (Tate Smith). She gave me suggestions for long-term recovery and direct answers to my questions."

Deering expressed concern about the future of all the citizens of Rushford. "I want to keep the momentum going. I want Rushford to be beautiful again," she said.

Harvell said the conference is recruiting Volunteer in Mission teams to help winterize and rebuild damaged homes. A donation from a construction company will go to build a men's dormitory to house volunteers in the church basement at McKinley United Methodist Church.

Wisconsin response
In Wisconsin, nearly 5,000 people have applied for assistance in 14 counties, according to FEMA.

Four regions will be established for long-term recovery, and the office in La Crosse already is up and running. In late October, Smith trained nearly 20 staff and volunteer case managers.

"A workforce development grant is helping to fund positions in our regional offices," said David Sharpe, Wisconsin Conference coordinator. "We feel we are about 75 percent put together (and) moving along fairly well."

Through the annual conferences, UMCOR will continue to assist with advice, funds, training and volunteer coordination as families rebuild.

"We urge our generous United Methodists to continue to help these families," said the Rev. Sam Dixon, UMCOR's chief executive. "Gifts to the Domestic Disaster Response Advance will help make long-term recovery possible, especially for the most vulnerable in their communities."

To give to Advance #901670, Domestic Disaster Response - Midwest Floods, place a contribution in local church offering plates or mail a check directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Credit card donations can be made by calling (800) 554-8583 or visiting http://www.givetomission.org/. Donors also can replenish supplies of flood buckets for future disaster response. To learn more, visit http://www.umcor.org/.

*Meister is UMCOR's domestic disaster response correspondent.

United Methodists to focus on secondary fire victims

United Methodists to focus on secondary fire victims

Raging wildfires in Southern California destroyed numerous homes in the Rancho Bernardo area of San Diego. The United Methodist Committee on Relief is focusing on helping secondary victims of the fires that started Oct. 21 and are now mostly contained. UMNS photos by Andrea Booher, FEMA.

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

While homeowners affected by October wildfires in California are receiving much attention, others suffering different losses are getting less notice.

Those secondary victims will be the main focus of the United Methodist response to the fires, according to the Rev. Tom Hazelwood, head of domestic disaster response for the United Methodist Committee on Relief. Many of the homeowners, he believes, were covered by insurance.

"Primarily, our response work is going to be in the San Diego area," Hazelwood told United Methodist News Service after his Oct. 29-31 assessment visit to Southern California.

The fires started Oct. 21 and spread through San Diego, San Bernardino, Orange, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Riverside and Ventura counties, and nearly all were contained as of Nov. 5. The exceptions were the Poomacha fire in San Diego County and the Santiago fire in Orange County, where full containment was expected within the week.

Thousands of families lost their homes or suffered damage. The California insurance commissioner has estimated damages exceeding $1.5 billion.

UMCOR already has given a $10,000 emergency grant to the denomination's California-Pacific Annual Conference, and Hazelwood expects another request from conference officials, perhaps for as much as $100,000.

Coordinated response
The Rev. Myron Wingfield, district superintendent in San Diego, has formed an ad hoc fire recovery team "to provide a comprehensive, coordinated, collaborative and long-range plan" for response.

UMCOR will partner with Metro United Urban Methodist Ministries in San Diego, which has worked with the relief agency to assist Hurricane Katrina victims who had relocated there. Led by John Hughes, Metro provides direct social services, supports community development and helps local churches working with people in their neighborhoods.

The attention to secondary victims will be similar to the United Methodist response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, which economically impacted workers in or near New York's Twin Towers and the Pentagon.

Those affected by the fires include migrant workers on the region's vegetable farms. "Many of those farms were damaged or ruined because of the fires," Hazelwood explained, adding that other farms shut down during the crisis. "It's going to have an impact on the social service community."

In addition to assisting farm workers, he expects UMCOR will provide case management for some families whose homes were destroyed. "I don't know what the spiritual and emotional impact will be and what resources we need to provide for that as well," he said.

According to a column by Amanda Martinez in The Nation, the relief and evacuation efforts missed many undocumented workers in the San Diego area, leading the Mexican Consulate, in partnership with advocacy groups, to provide relief efforts.

The Regional Task Force on the Homeless in San Diego estimates more than 1,600 agricultural workers and day laborers live in makeshift settlements in the area. The number of farms in San Diego County ranks second in the nation, the task force said.

Messages of hope
United Methodists also began sharing messages of hope during the week of Nov. 5-11 on cable television networks serving residents of San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
Developed by the California-Pacific Conference and United Methodist Communications, the commercials began airing on CNN, CNN Headline News, Fox News Channel, The Weather Channel and MSNBC.

"In the past few weeks, we've lost a lot of things, but we still have hope. We still have kindness. We still have gifts to share with others," the commercial says. "We are here to serve this community as it rebuilds. Together, we can make a difference. Our hearts, our minds and our doors are always open."

To contribute to UMCOR's relief efforts in California, checks can be placed in local United Methodist church offering plates or mailed directly to UMCOR at P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Write "UMCOR Advance No. 901670 Domestic Disaster Response California Wildfires" on the memo line of the check. For credit card donations, call (800) 554-8583 or visit http://www.umcor.org/.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

Retired pastor finds life in midst of fire tragedy

The Rev. Dudley Johnson shows Bishop Mary Ann Swenson the ruins of his home after an Oct. 22 wildfire raced through the Rancho Bernardo area of San Diego. UMNS photos by Larry R. Hygh Jr.

By Larry R. Hygh Jr.*

SAN DIEGO (UMNS) - When the Rev. Dudley Johnson awoke at 4 a.m., coughing from what he thought was an asthma attack, he looked out his window to see flames and smoke creeping up the hill behind his home.

The retired United Methodist pastor roused his family and went next door to awaken his 80-year-old neighbor. They gathered their family pets and piled into an old car that was big enough to hold everyone, and fled.

Five minutes after their departure in the early morning of Oct. 22, their Rancho Bernardo neighborhood house burned to the ground. The Johnsons lost everything, including a new car left in the driveway.

"I lost everything, and I have everything," said Johnson.

His wife, Janet, who is pursuing a master's degree, lost her thesis and research, two years in the writing. But Mrs. Johnson is focusing on what matters most.

"What is most important for me is the love I have for my husband, and the love my husband gives me," she said. "The love I have for my children and the love my children give me. The love I have for my family, my friends, my co-workers, who are also my friends, I still have all of that."

The Johnsons had not received an evacuation order and did not have time to gather important personal items when the wind-driven fires moved into their area. "We had three to five minutes to save our lives," he said.

While the family lost precious heirlooms and photos, Janet Johnson says "photos are only triggers of memories of what my parents used to look like, what my children used to look like." Her parents are deceased, but she said, "I look in my son's face, I look in my daughter's face, and there they are. I look in the mirror, and there they are.

"What we lost are just symbols of all the things that are so important in our lives that mean so much and we still have those. We still have our memories," she said.

Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, resident bishop of the Los Angeles area, visited with Rev. Johnson in the ashes of his former home. They were accompanied by the Rev. Tom Hazelwood, United Methodist Committee on Relief; the Rev. Myron Wingfield, San Diego District Superintendent; and the Rev. Dave Horning, California-Pacific Conference Disaster Response Coordinator.

Among the burned treasures was a photo taken by his mother of Johnson and three classmates from the Claremont School of Theology graduating class of 1975. Swenson was part of that class.

At the close of a worship service the night before, Swenson invited Johnson and the two other pastors in that photo to come forward to take a new picture of the four of them. That new picture will hang in the Johnsons' new home. Johnson said the family plans to rebuild on the same site.

"We have faith and trust and love with one another. United Methodists are about love and care; we know life in Christ always triumphs over death, for death in never the final word," he said.

Mrs. Johnson added, "We're not put here to have a good time. We're not put here to live in comfort. We're put here so that we can honor God through our service to one another."

*Hygh is director of communications for the United Methodist California-Pacific Annual Conference.

Education is key to wiping out malaria

Lare Xaviar lives in Maputo, Mozambique, where all three of her children have had malaria, a disease that kills one in four African children under the age of 5. UMNS photos by John Gordon.

By Joey Butler*

MAPUTO, Mozambique (UMNS) - Since Lare Xaviar has three children, the odds may be in her favor. If she had four, one likely would not survive.

Malaria kills one in four African children under the age of 5. Though all of her children have had the disease, none have succumbed to it.

"It's very scary when they have it. The first thing I do is rush them to the hospital, because they can die at any time," Xaviar said.

She describes the symptoms: vomiting, severe diarrhea and high temperatures.

"At night it's very scary because I don't have transportation and there's no ambulance," she said. "I only have a piece of cloth to put cold water on them to keep the temperature low until morning so I can take them to the hospital."

A scourge in Africa
Xaviar's story is all too common.

Ninety percent of malaria deaths worldwide occur in Africa. The disease kills an African child every 30 seconds. Many children who survive an episode of severe malaria may suffer from learning impairments or brain damage. Pregnant women and their unborn children are also particularly vulnerable. In fact, more Mozambicans die from malaria than from HIV/AIDS.

"The issue of HIV/AIDS has dominated our intervention, but I challenge people that HIV/AIDS did not come to take us from other serious problems that affect our continent, one of which is malaria," said the Rev. Dinis Matsono, a United Methodist pastor and head of the Mozambican Christian Council.

The council is part of an ecumenical campaign called Roll Back Malaria, led by Anglican Bishop Dinis Sengulane, president of the Christian Council; United Methodist Bishop João Somane Machado of the Mozambique Area; and a Muslim imam. Roll Back Malaria focuses on how the public needs to be educated about the disease and its prevention.

The council conducts workshops to explain the importance of sleeping under insecticide-treated bed nets, wearing long sleeves at night when mosquitoes are most active, and preventing unsanitary conditions that breed the insects. The workshops stress that the fight against malaria is a community effort.

"It does no good to clean my own corner if the corner of my neighbor is not well taken care of," Matsono said. "The mosquitoes of my neighbor can visit me at any time; therefore I have not resolved the problem. We must work together."

Understanding malaria
Machado considers education key to the long-term health of Mozambique.

Duwahabi Ogoba and her two children from Lekki, Nigeria, are protected from malaria by an insecticide-treated mosquito net provided by the Nothing But Nets campaign. A UMNS file photo by Mike DuBose.

"In some rural areas, they see all kinds of insects that bite them and they don't get sick. They must understand that mosquitoes cause the disease," Machado said. "We must teach mothers they can make better food for their children to make their blood stronger, and teach them about boiling water if it is not clean. When we start to teach about what malaria means, we can fight."

Machado cites the importance of initiatives like Nothing But Nets, founded by the people of The United Methodist Church, Sports Illustrated, NBA Cares and the United Nations Foundation to raise money to purchase and distribute sleeping nets.

"Mozambique is not yet a country where you can find health care easily," Machado said. "The unique way to protect children is to have these nets."

He adds that the protection provided by the nets is especially vital in rural areas where clinics may be 20 miles away, and children could likely die before reaching the clinic.

Education must accompany net distribution, however. Matsono describes how some people use the nets for other purposes, such as fishing, when they do not understand that the nets can help prevent malaria. Machado ties such misuses to another obstacle in the fight against malaria: poverty.

"They want food for their kids, so instead of putting them under the nets to sleep, they fish with them," Machado said. "We must give them other ways of finding food. You give the poor people a net and they say, 'God just answered our problems for feeding our kids.'

"We cannot fight malaria with nets alone; we must teach people why we have the nets."
Changing behaviors

Another obstacle to overcome is resistance to adapting lifestyles. Strange as it may seem, some just don't want to use bed nets.

Carol Kreamer, coordinator of the Missouri Annual (regional) Conference's Mozambique Initiative, has seen such resistance firsthand.

"I know educated men of means who don't put their family under the nets," she said. "Others figure if they're out at night, they're going to get bit anyway, and they don't want to be trapped in the house all night. Training is critical. They must learn that malaria doesn't discriminate and they must change their behavior."

Matsono sees the church playing a role in educating others to protect themselves.

"In this country, there are remote areas where it may be hard to reach them, but the churches are already there. We can reach them through the churches," he said.

"The church is doing a lot to address the issue of malaria, be it from the pulpit or outside the pulpit," Xaviar said. "When you have somebody who is sick, they're always there to assist you and help get you to the hospital."

Bed nets are a preventative measure, but long-term advancements are being made as well, which pleases Matsono. "It is difficult when so many die in an era with so many technological and medical advances available, knowing it can be prevented," he said.

Matsono says certain species of plants thought to repel mosquitoes have been identified. If this is the case, bringing them to the regions that could benefit and educating people to plant them is the next step.

"We still believe that if the whole world can work together, we can find a vaccine or long-term solution," Machado said, "and the next generation can be living without malaria."

*Butler is managing editor of Interpreter magazine, the official magazine of The United Methodist Church.

United Methodists to Air Messages of Hope for Southern California Fire Victims

SAN DIEGO – Southern California United Methodists will air television commercials sharing messages of hope with millions of their neighbors affected by the wildfires that have destroyed nearly 2,000 homes and scarred more than 600,000 acres.

The commercials will air Nov. 5-11 on cable television networks serving the residents of San Diego, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties. Southern California United Methodists are spending nearly $25,000 to air the commercials on CNN, CNN Headline News, Fox News Channel, The Weather Channel, and MSNBC.

“Lives have been lost. Hundreds of thousands of persons have been displaced. Yet, in the midst of such chaos, we see powerful stories of neighbors helping neighbors and communities helping communities,” said Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, leader of United Methodists in the region.

The commercial says:

In the past few weeks, we’ve lost a lot of things, but we still have hope. We still have kindness. We still have gifts to share with others.

We are here to serve this community as it rebuilds. Together, we can make a difference.

Our hearts, our minds and our doors are always open.


The commercial was developed by the California-Pacific Annual (regional) Conference of The United Methodist Church and Nashville-based United Methodist Communications.