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Dear friends in Christ,

Lutheran Disaster Response, a cooperative ministry of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, is
providing an initial grant of $25,000 to Lutheran Social Services of the
South (Kurt Senske, president).  LSSS is managing LDR's response to floods
in Texas and Louisiana resulting from Tropical Storm Allison.  This storm
left behind a long trail of death and destruction, from Texas and
Louisiana, through Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, and has now affected
Georgia and the Carolinas.  Rain totaling 36 inches fell in Houston, and 19
inches in Baton Rouge.  The losses of lives and the damage of tens of
thousands of homes are numbing.

I am writing to you from Houston, where I'm traveling with Mark Minick
(LDR-Texas disaster coordinator) and Bonnie Turner (LDR-North Dakota
consultant).  Last night we met with 50 people at Memorial Drive Lutheran
Church, including pastors, Texas District staff (LCMS), a Texas-Louisiana
Gulf Coast Synod officer (ELCA), and Aid Association for Lutheran and
Lutheran Brotherhood representatives (Lutheran Disaster Response Coalition
members).  Congregation after congregation reported their first count of
affected families affected.  The first tally was nearly 560, and it is
expected that number could double.  One pastor described how his family
lost everything in the flood:  "When we went to bed, six inches of rain had
fallen.  When we woke up, we already had eight inches of water in our
house.  Everything we owned is out on the curb, and my family is presently
homeless."  Nearly $80,000 of emergency cash grants were distributed
through the congregations to help flood survivors.

Today we drove through some of the flood-affected areas in northern
Houston.  We saw the familiar and heart-breaking sight of water-soaked
family possessions piled high at the curb.  Personal memories, baby toys,
family photos, favorite chairs, sports equipment, books and letters are
soggy heaps ready to be hauled away.  High temperatures and humidity are
already producing mold problems.

As I write this report, immediate needs and damages continue to be
assessed.  The full impact is still unmeasured.  Some people are still
missing.  Some communities are without phone and electrical service.
American Red Cross shelters are filled to capacity and lines are long with
people seeking assistance.  Tomorrow we will meet with VOAD partners
(voluntary agencies active in disasters), and next week Shirley Norman,
Church World Service representative, will arrive to enable a coordinated
interfaith response.

At the moment only local volunteers can be utilized.  I will inform you as
soon as I know when outside volunteers can help with cleanup and initial
repairs.  LDR will continue a two-pronged response in Texas and Louisiana,
working through our Lutheran congregations to wider communities and
participating in interfaith efforts as they are organized.

Your prayers of support will help the survivors of Tropical Storm Allison,
who are just beginning to recover from their chaotic, flooding destruction.
And your contributions will enable the church to provide help and hope for
the long haul to those whose lives have been forever changed.

You can help by sending contributions to

    ELCA DOMESTIC Disaster Response - "Tropical Storm Allison"
    P.O. Box # 71764
    Chicago, Illinois 60694-1764.

        Credit card gift line: 1-800-638-3522
        Credit card gifts via the web:  www.ELCA.org/disaster

    LC-MS World Relief
    P.O. Box 66861
    St. Louis, MO 63166-9810

        Credit card gift line: 1-888-930-4438

Our Christian faith speaks to us in such times of loss.  We remember that
God does not abandon us in times of loss, but in fact comes to us with
grace and love.  Even in times of hopeless despair, God is with us, setting
aside our fears, providing us with comfort.

In Christ,
Gil Furst


GILBERT B. FURST (written on Thu, Jun 14, 2001,11:23 pm).  Director for
  ELCA DOMESTIC DISASTER RESPONSE (Division for Church in Society) and
  LUTHERAN DISASTER RESPONSE (a cooperative ministry of the ELCA and LC-MS)
  8765 W. Higgins Rd., Chicago 60631  PHONE: 773-380-2822 FAX: 773-380-2493
Please visit our website:  www.elca.org/dcs/disaster