Williamson Co. Note and Needs

- Wow! Things certainly look better in our affected areas since the tornado hit on February 5. Because of our wonderful volunteers, we have made a difference! Homeowners and many people in our community are just so thankful for the assistance from our volunteers........Thanks to you!

- We're continuing to send volunteers out as they call in to give assistance. We hope to be sending out another 75 people on Saturday. (Civil Air Patrol is now approved to assist in our volunteer efforts..these are the high school students in military style uniforms you may have seen in our tornado zones recently)

- Current needs are: chainsaws, bulldozer or backhoes, people needed to pack and move belongings, house demolition (use of crowbars, hammers, etc.), and debris removal from chainsaws. If you or someone you know wants to volunteer, please call to schedule at 615-799-2575.

- Most of our volunteers are coming from churches, universities, or TEMA. If you know of any community organizations, pass the word along that we still need volunteers.

United Methodists begin Midwest flood response

A UMNS Report
By Susan J. Meister*

Floodwaters partially submerge homes in Dutchtown, Mo., one of many communities impacted by spring floods in Arkansas, Ohio, Illinois and Missouri. UMNS photos by Jocelyn Augustino, FEMA.

Many residents in Arkansas are experiencing a "nightmare" as they deal with a series of weather-related systems affecting parts of the U.S. Midwest, according to Maxine Allen.

Families affected by the Feb. 5 tornadoes suffered an ice storm two weeks later and in March were dealing with devastating flooding along a nearly identical track. "People are in a fragile mental state, wondering, 'Why me?'" said Allen, the disaster response and missions coordinator for the United Methodist Arkansas Annual (regional) Conference.

Allen is working with partners and the United Methodist Committee on Relief to assess the needs created by all three events and organize response and recovery.

On March 23, the National Weather Service warned that historic flooding was possible in cities along the path of the White River in eastern Arkansas. According to The Associated Press, at least 17 deaths have been linked to the flooding and other weather effects in parts of Ohio, southern Illinois and Missouri.

"We are in touch with the annual conferences affected by the flooding to provide support as events unfold," said the Rev. Tom Hazelwood, who leads UMCOR's domestic disaster response.

In neighboring Missouri, Disaster Response Coordinator Karen Benson is relying on her district coordinators to check in. "Because of past experience in the affected counties, we can anticipate that there will be uninsured and underinsured families who will need our help," she said.

"While it's really too early to say exactly what we'll need, we are 'cooking' the recovery picture."
Benson is chairwoman of the Governor's Disaster Recovery Partnership in Missouri, and the Rev. Mark Dumas is active in the state Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster. "Lots of United Methodists will be active in this response," she said.

Illinois and Ohio Responses
The Illinois Great Rivers Conference has requested emergency grants from UMCOR to address flooding in both February and March. On Feb. 5 and 6, water inundated Watseka and Pontiac in the northeast part of the conference, prompting a Feb. 24 request. New flooding in southern Illinois from heavy rains prompted a second request on March 20 from Bishop Sharon A. Brown Christopher.

"Lots of flooding happened on the east side of town, the commercial area. People may be out of work for weeks," said the Rev. Paul Widicus, pastor of Harrisburg (Ill.) First United Methodist Church, where between 9 and 12 inches of rain fell in 24 hours during the week of March 17.

"The Ohio, Wabash and Mississippi Rivers are already at flood stage," he continued. "Next week, many towns will be surrounded by water."

Widicus expects a long summer of cleanup. Like his counterparts in Arkansas and Missouri, he is preparing for the long-term response. "We have an ecumenical group in Harrisburg called Christian Compassion Center. We'll be able to find families needing help as the response unfolds," he said.

United Methodists can support UMCOR's flood relief efforts with donations to Advance #901670. Write "Midwestern Floods" on the memo line of the check, and drop in local church collection plates or mail directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Online giving is available at http://www.givetomission.org/.

*Meister is the Domestic Disaster Response Correspondent for UMCOR.

CONNECT, Annual Volunteers in Mission event at Lake Junaluska, NC to “INSPIRE. INFORM. INTERACT” – June 18-20, 2008

UMVIM, SEJ would like to announce the upcoming event, CONNECT. Held on June 18 -20, 2008 at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, CONNECT’s theme is “INSPIRE. INFORM. INTERACT.”

CONNECT is an annual event hosted by United Methodist Volunteers In Mission, Southeast Jurisdiction (UMVIM, SEJ). A tradition for over 28 years, CONNECT allows participants to share experiences, gain insight and resources, and network with missionaries and project leaders. Whether it is through the variety of workshops offered, the diversity of the keynote speakers, or the Christ-centered worship services, CONNECT seeks to provide practical tools to equip persons seeking to serve God through short-term mission. Whether participants are novices or veteran missioners, CONNECT 2008 will act as a springboard for participants to be agents for change by providing a place to INFORM (educational workshops and speakers), INSPIRE (incredible worship and daily bible studies), and INTERACT (Projects with a Purpose). Whatever your mission interest—team/individual, domestic/international, medical/disaster response)—CONNECT is a great place to begin your mission experience!

CONNECT will feature keynote speakers, Dr. Lester Spencer, Board of Directors President for United Methodist Volunteers in Mission, SEJ; Bishop James Swanson, Sr., Holston Conference; Rev. Chris Stockwell-Goering, Missionary Interpreter for SEJ; and Dr. Henry Perry, founder of Curamericas and professor within Future Generations.

Workshops will be offered on a wide variety of mission topics, including: Families in Mission, Cultural Sensitivity, Disaster Response, Global Water Crisis, and more: participants will visit with international and domestic project leaders who will share first-hand information about work in their countries and states.

YUMVIM (Young United Methodist Volunteers In Mission) is an excellent program for children and will run concurrently with CONNECT. Kids will have a lot of great mission-oriented activities such as hands-on projects, music, worship and plays to keep them entertained and help them grow.

Projects with a Purpose provides time for participants to network with international and national project leaders. This is a great opportunity to find information about your next mission trip or to sign up for an exploratory trip to a particular country or area.

Projects with a Purpose will include:
Honduras
Kenya
Uganda
Native American ministry
Cambodia
France
Disaster Relief in Mississippi

For more information, including event registration, please visit http://www.umvim.org/ or call 404-377-7424.

Nothing But Nets raises $18 million in first year

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)--Nothing But Nets, an anti-malaria campaign of The United Methodist Church and other partners, raised more than $18 million from 60,000 donors during its first year.

A new report issued by the United Nations Foundation said the total was raised as of Dec. 31, 2007, to buy and distribute insecticide-treated sleeping nets for families in Africa.

The sum includes more than $9.4 million donated by individuals, $3 million in matching funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and $5.7 million contributed through "Idol Gives Back," a two-night "American Idol" television special benefiting organizations that help children in poverty.

More than 700,000 nets have been distributed in the Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Chad, Mali, Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The United Methodist Church is a founding partner in Nothing But Nets. Other partners include the U.N. Foundation, Sports Illustrated, the National Basketball Association's NBA Cares, Major League Soccer, the Mark J. Gordon Foundation and VH-1.

"Nothing But Nets has developed a unique set of partners over the last 18 months, ranging from multimedia organizations to professional sports leagues to faith-based groups to foundations," the report states. "These partners are key to the success of the campaign, for it is through partnerships that Nothing But Nets has been able to reach mass constituencies and engage diverse segments of the American public in this global effort to prevent malaria."

During 2007, the campaign attracted broad participation across The United Methodist Church through local churches, youth groups, annual conferences and individuals. Organizers also partnered with a number of bishops' offices to host special malaria awareness events in Miami, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Houston, Detroit and Minneapolis.

"It's just phenomenal what we've been able to accomplish in such a short time," said Bishop Thomas Bickerton, United Methodist spokesman for the campaign. "It's been more like a movement than a campaign. The reality is that we can save a child's life for such a small amount of money, and that message has really touched people's hearts and compelled them to get engaged."

*This story was based on a news release by the Office of Public Relations for The United Methodist Church.

Neighborhood house assists Katrina survivors

Bonita Jethro (center), a Hurricane Katrina evacuee from New Orleans, visits Shirley Ellington and Bill Kreeb, staff with the Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House in East St. Louis, Ill. UMNS photos courtesy of Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House.

By Susan J. Meister*

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. (UMNS)-Bonita Jethro was born and raised in East St. Louis and remembered Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House from her childhood.

As an adult, she started a new life in New Orleans. "It was a great move for me," she said. "I was a head baker for Piccadilly Restaurant for 14 years."

Then Hurricane Katrina blew in, sending Jethro back to the city of her youth. She encountered the Neighborhood House again-but this time as a ministry reaching out and assisting survivors of the hurricane.

The house is a national mission institution of The United Methodist Church. It also is one of 12 organizations in nine states that received grassroots grants from the Emergency Services Office of the United Methodist Committee on Relief to assist Hurricane Katrina survivors across the United States. About $2.3 million was available for the hurricane recovery grants due to the generosity of United Methodists.

"The Neighborhood House offers a prime example of an existing community-based ministry that stretched itself to do effective disaster response," said Tom Hazelwood, UMCOR's domestic disaster response executive.

"The ministry has a nearly 100-year history of assisting families in the Metro East area. So when Katrina survivors began to arrive, they were ready and willing to step in with short-term relief services and case management for long-term recovery."

Ministry greets survivors
The Neighborhood House specializes in social, economic and neighborhood development services aimed at meeting the special needs of children, families and the elderly in East St. Louis and St. Clair County.

When Katrina hit landfall on Aug. 29, 2005, the agency began to raise funds and collect items to send to those affected on the Gulf Coast. But the staff quickly realized that the disaster was arriving in their own backyard. Jethro and many other families were evacuating to a familiar place.

"Within a week, we became aware that hundreds of individuals and families were coming up from Louisiana and Mississippi to stay with family and friends here," said William Kreeb, executive director. "That presented a problem. The majority of the families that were providing emergency housing for their relatives were already living below the poverty line themselves."

Neighborhood House staff quickly shifted their focus and joined with other churches and agencies to form the St. Clair County Disaster Relief Coalition. "The families we met didn't come through the local airports, where state and local disaster relief organizations had time to plan and put services in place," Kreeb said. "Our folks came by car or van or bus, at all hours of the day. There was no way to know how many families who needed services were coming or when. We just had to be ready."

Denita Jacox and other staff members took the lead in providing emergency transportation, food, clothing and shelter until the families could connect with FEMA and other governmental organizations.

Moving from relief to recovery
After the initial emergency phase, it became clear that survivors would require assistance in pursuing long-term solutions to re-establish their lives and find permanency and stability within Illinois communities. The UMCOR grassroots grant provided the ministry with resources to help move families into recovery.

In October 2005, Shirley Ellington joined the staff at Neighborhood House as its Hurricane Katrina coordinator. She joined ongoing efforts to connect survivors with direct services and began to network with other agencies on a long-term response.

"The biggest challenge the survivors faced was finding jobs in this area," Ellington said. "They came from a tourist/agricultural mindset to an industrial/corporate job market. They needed education and job skills. The people also dealt with a lot of depression."

Ellington and other Neighborhood House staff members tenaciously reached out into the neighborhoods to find and assist survivors. Jethro was impressed that the agency knocked on her door and asked, "What are your needs?"

"And they reminded us, 'You are not alone.' And they are still there for us," she said.

Jethro is doing well after facing some serious health issues since last September and is raising three grandchildren, ages 12, 13 and 14. Her older son Greg is in culinary school at the local community college, funded through Neighborhood House.

Ellington reported that 500 individuals and families were assisted by the ministry.

Compassionate care
Ellington approached long-term recovery with survivors through the case management model, a family-by-family, problem-solving approach advocated and perfected by UMCOR and other agencies over years of disaster response.

This approach encourages each family to write and implement its own recovery plan. Case managers walk alongside the family to help negotiate the labyrinth of paperwork for insurance and government services and to access other resources.

Case managers also offer a caring presence to individuals and families during the difficult process of recovery. The spiritual and emotional help they provide sometimes far outweighs the financial assistance.

This was true for Donna Meyers, who affectionately referred to herself and Ellington as "the boohoo crew."

"It is humbling to be on the receiving side," Meyers said. "I really worried about everything. Shirley was someone to talk to."

Meyers' husband's business in Louisiana was destroyed. The family left their homes and came to the Metro East area because "it was a 10-hour drive (to a niece's home) instead of 19-hour drive to Ohio."

She, her husband, her two teenage children, her mother and her mother-in-law thought they would only be in town for a week, but Ellington and the Neighborhood House stepped in to help the family find a house. They helped pay for Meyers to be recertified to work as a nurse in Illinois and helped with paperwork and other financial challenges.

"Shirley has been such a blessing," she said. "Without her, I don't think I would have made it."

*Meister is the domestic disaster response correspondent for UMCOR.

Williamson Volunteers Needed

Here is a note from the Long Term Recovery group who are also coordinating ongoing cleanup.

As time goes by, we get fewer and fewer volunteers. For the first time, we have work orders for tornado assistance without enough volunteers to meet those needs. Our current needs are: chain saws, backhoes, house/trailer demolition, fence installation, chippers, general debris cleanup. If you or someone you know wants to volunteer this Saturday, please call to schedule at 615-799-2575. We can also schedule out for the next couple of weekends. We will probably start advertising for volunteer assistance in the near future.