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Dear Christian Friends,
"I feel all alone," said one Lutheran pastor as he reflected on the flood
damage in his community. "This is more than I can take on myself." The
good news for this pastor is that he is not alone, nor is he left to his
own resources in reaching out to help his neighbors. The whole church will
be present and helping.
Lutheran Disaster Response, a shared ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, is responding to
deadly flooding that affected east-central Missouri last weekend. As much
as 14 inches of rain fell west and south of St. Louis when a large storm
system passed through the region. Hardest hit were Franklin and Jefferson
counties. An initial $5,000 grant has been provided by LDR to assist with
emergency needs, and for cleanup and recovery efforts.
The floods resulted in the destruction of roughly 100 homes and damage to
approximately 400 more. Estimates of the number of people displaced are
not yet available. Only 11% of the affected residences had insurance
coverage. Over sixty percent of the affected families and individuals are
in the low-income bracket. There were two vehicle-related deaths.
Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri (Alan Erdman,
president) will manage LDR efforts. Gary Buatte, the LFCS disaster
response coordinator, has formed a local steering committee of the area
Lutheran pastors, as well as representatives of the insurance fraternals
(Aid Association for Lutherans and Lutheran Brotherhood). Interfaith
efforts will be coordinated with the local Ministerial Alliance.
Your prayers for the safety and well being of those affected are important.
And your donations will help the church to respond, letting the disaster
survivors know they are not alone - that God still loves them, and that
God's people will offer help and hope.
Send contributions to:
ELCA DOMESTIC Disaster Response
PO Box 71764
Chicago, Illinois 60694-1764
Credit card gift line: 1-800-638-3522
LC-MS World Relief
P.O. Box 66861
St. Louis, MO 63166-9810
Credit card gift line: 1-888-930-4438
Yours in Christ,
Gil Furst
GILBERT B. FURST (written on Tue, May 16, 2000,12:49 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
