Dear friends in Christ,

Last week I received the following update from John Scibilia, the Lutheran Disaster Response coordinator in New York.  I am sharing it with you, because I believe you will find John's words informative and poignant.  As a New Yorker, he is able to spell out first-hand what it means to live in that post-September 11th environment, and describe the situation in which the church is providing disaster response ministries.

Yours in Christ,
Gil Furst

<<<<<<<<<<<<<  John's message  >>>>>>>>>>>

Its seventeen months since 9/11/01.

Seventeen months since, the wave effects of the disaster continue to evolve with severe economic and emotional impact. A report released today indicates more than half of the 176,000 job losses in New York can be traced to the economic aftershocks of September 11. Homelessness is at an all time high in New York's recorded history. Some food programs have experienced triple digit percentage increases in participation. And even as the nation's economy is showing signs of recovery, New York City continues to be in a downward spiral countering that national trend. When a client recently contacted a care manager at Project LIFE (Lutheran Initiative for Assistance) for help, the client was asked if she was affected by 9/11. Her response was clear, "Who isn't around here?"

People here are on edge seventeen months later. There is an increase in the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder diagnosis related to 9/11. For many who believed their symptoms would fade away with time are just now beginning to seek help. Just last week LDRNY assisted one woman experiencing PTSD who lost seventeen friends on September 11 and needed to leave her job because of the documented verbal abuse of her boss telling her to get over it. Another woman experienced a mental collapse as she could no longer answer the phone for her company with the answer "he is no longer with the firm" knowing the reason was many of those no longer with the firm died on September 11. The abused, the immigrants, the children, those in poverty and the working poor often experience emotional trauma due to the economic and other issues directly related to 9/11. It is a vicious co-dependent effect cycle that is destroying lives every single day.

Many of us in the disaster response community have made the observation that people's nerves seem as tight now as they were just after 9/11. Arguments and downright fights over relatively obscure and unimportant issues are almost commonplace. The high energy and emotion of the first months of rescue and recovery is as high as ever this many months into recovery. Many case workers, care givers, disaster responders and leaders are exhausted.

Why is it difficult to make significant strides in the "moving on" process seventeen months later? Well consider just the past few days in New York City.

Seventeen months later, Code Orange is announced. Once again there is a strong visible sign of military and police presence. It was tough to find duct tape and plastic sheets in any store, regardless of the fact most people here believed it really wouldn't make any difference. Tom Ridge made it clear publicly that Homeland Security continues to believe the two primary targets in the US are Washington, D.C. And New York City. All this in the midst of the United States government making its case for war at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.

Parents are calling schools frantically wanting to know about their children's safety. They are scared. As they share their fears, their children's anxiety levels increase drastically. I've had reports of children again talking a great deal about the 'towers.' And, imagine those who have family in the military being positioned now in the Middle East. Schools are extremely vulnerable. Some may remember nuclear attack drills of hiding under desks and getting into a yoga position in the hallways. It was the 1960s version of duct tape and plastic sheeting. Looking back, we know that wouldn't have protected us. So, parents want to know what a school will do in a disaster, and duct tape will not address that concern.

A television report was aired here titled "Tunnels of Terror" which described the danger of an attack in the subway tunnels. Obviously this kind of media hype is a problem. But, the information being reported is absolutely accurate about the potential dangers in those tunnels. The next day I was on a rush hour subway when the train came to a grinding halt and were told the train would not stop at Penn Station, which was closed due to police activity. Penn Station is a major rail transportation hub in mid-town Manhattan. Looking into the eyes of my fellow riders, there was naked fear and you could hear a pin drop. On September 10, 2001, most New Yorkers would have simply been annoyed at this inconvenience and had plenty of creative words to share about whoever they thought might have caused this problem. The increasingly common announcements like this now have one thinking, perhaps those are the last words I'll ever hear. Melodramatic? It may sound that way. But, knowing the !
context in which we now live and what was experienced here seventeen plus months ago leaving a gapping wound, it is at least understandable.

The President's Day blizzard on Feb. 17 - 17 months since 9/11.  Now New Yorkers jammed the stores in a frenzy for the second time in a week. This time it was to purchase bread and milk. This snow was almost a welcomed natural weather disaster. The city was reminded nature too can have an ugly effect. On that day I again ventured into the subway as a young man came bolting up the steps yelling at me, "don't go down there dude. There are people wall to wall. Something is going to happen. It happened in South Korea, it can happen right here." And, when I did get on the almost enough standing room only train, it was again an experience of being held in a station because of police activity at the next station. The voice of the conductor was a duet with a man in my car carrying a bucket asking for change as he needed $2,000 to bury his 5-month-old daughter who was killed in a house fire. He actually was showing the death certificate to those who wanted to see. What a way to start!
 the day.

Seventeen months later, many disaster related agencies and organizations are now spending their efforts and resources primarily in emergency and disaster preparedness in New York City. In disaster the larger agencies and organizations such as the American Red Cross and FEMA carry much of the burden initially. Now their programs, which have helped many, are coming to an end. Unfortunately, thousands have been left behind. For example, some people are just now coming forward for financial assistance. They've exhausted their savings and run their credit to high limits believing they could make it without having to get assistance. Now that it is clear to them they need help, the registration deadlines have past and programs have very tight restrictions for assistance at this point. Free counseling session provided through FEMA funded and New York State operated Project Liberty involve only a couple of sessions. In many cases, such as PTSD, that doesn't begin to scratch the surfa!
ce.

It is clear to Lutheran Disaster Response of New York seventeen months later, that as the Church, we are called upon to fill the gaps left by other government and disaster-related relief organizations. It is clear that many people were affected by 9/11 and fall outside the strict geographical and employment assistance guidelines set by other organizations. Many people lost jobs as a result of the disaster, as well as homes and places of business. We realize that 9/11 is weaving itself in the lives of every New Yorker seventeen months later. Each day we set out to identify who the hidden victims are, and how we can help. Our goal was never to simply throw money at a problem, but rather, to help people heal, recover and move on with their lives on their own timetable and with the help of God. That has meant LDRNY and its partner agencies and organizations providing help in job-training, language assistance, understanding and navigating the public assistance system, housing, co!
unseling, tuition assistance, care management, training and food assistance. Programs made possible through LDRNY have touched the lives of thousands of people and is committed to work tirelessly well past this seventeen plus month since 9/11.

John J. Scibilia LDRNY Executive Director



GILBERT B. FURST (written on Thur, February 27, 2003, at 4:23 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: 773-380-2719 FAX: 773-380-2493
Please visit our websites:  www.LDR.org  and www.elca.org/dcs/disaster