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LEON PHILLIPS Mar. 11, 1998 at 23:10 Eastern (2168 characters)
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will respond to the tragic
floods that are hitting Georgia and Alabama. Emergency grants and urgently
needed supplies will be provided by Lutheran Disaster Response, a
cooperative ministry of the ELCA and LCMS.
You have read the reports by Pastor Charles Thompson on this meeting as he
described the evacuation of 11,000 people in his community and noted the
likelihood of major flooding in Albany, Georgia. In Alabama, Eldon
Zimmerman, of LSS Alabama, has reported evacuation of 2,000 people as a
levee was breached. They are prepared to help immediately with volunteers
and emergency supplies.
For much of the Southeast these major blows have come together with a
series of vicious storms that continue to plague the region. In Central
Florida, Lutheran Disaster Response is active following the deadly
tornadoes that struck near Orlando, taking forty lives and leaving 2,000
homes devastated. Gil Furst and I walked through some of the damaged
communities, seeing one scene after another of total destruction and homes
reduced to rubble. Lutheran relief efforts will be concentrated in
Kissimmee, and Lutherans will also participate in ecumenical interfaith
efforts in other damage sites in Central Florida.
At present we do not have information on when, how or even whether
volunteers will be helpful in these situations. We will keep you posted on
this as quickly as information becomes available.
In California, Lutheran Social Services of Northern California is joining
partner denominations in a relief effort at several sites north and south
of San Francisco.
Remember in your prayers the many people who suffer from the severity of
these recent storms and their terrible aftermath.
To contribute: ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
PO Box 71764
Chicago, IL 60694-1764
LEON PHILLIPS 10:38 pm Wed, Mar 11, 1998
Director, ELCA Domestic Disaster Response( Division for Church in Society),
Lutheran Disaster Response ( a cooperative ministry of ELCA and LCMS)
Phone: 610-776-8390 FAX: 610-776-8392
e-mail:[log in to unmask] WEBSITE http://www.elca.org/dcs/disaster
