Hurricane Relief Information | September 2, 2005
FirstChurch and the greater United Methodist Church are working to relieve victims of Hurricane Katrina
A message from Dr. John F. Fiedler
Friday September 2, 2005

Dear Friends of First Church,

We have all spent these past five days watching the horrific images of death and destruction brought on by Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans and the Gulf Coast cities have suffered a calamity of apocalyptic proportions and, as we can see on CNN and other news outlets, the danger for hundreds of thousands of people remains:

• hospitals are trying to care for patients with no food or power
• thousands of people are stranded in the Superdome and Convention Center
• hundreds of people are trapped in buildings surrounded by toxic high water
• communication lines are down and many people are not accounted for
• thousands of homes have been flooded and/or destroyed
• victims are streaming into Dallas with few belongings and great need
• fighting, crime, and disorder have taken place

During this traumatic time, a word from the Psalmist is comforting:

I lift up eyes to the hills-
From where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth

Please pray for those stricken by this dreadful storm. A number of our members have relatives and friends who are still in the New Orleans/Gulf Coast area. Pray for them. I personally have eleven family members who have been forced from their New Orleans homes while my sister Livia, who was in the St. Louis, Mississippi area, has not been accounted for as of this writing. I ask your prayers for her as well.

Our relief efforts have been two-fold. First to send relief to the stricken areas and secondly to assist victims who have come to Dallas. Presently we are doing the following:

• Crossroads Community Services has been helping guests from Louisiana who have come to Dallas
• The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is launching a national emergency relief effort. Our communion rail offering this Sunday will go to UMCOR
• We donated 1,000 pounds of food to St. Luke United Methodist Church to assist in their effort to accommodate guests

Very Important:

Having just returned from a meeting at City Hall with Mayor Miller and City Manager Suhm, we have been informed that until further notice, churches and organizations other than the Red Cross and the Salvation Army WILL NOT be allowed to bring supplies, food, beverages etc. to the Reunion Arena. For this reason we are asking that you NOT bring donated goods for these displaced persons at Reunion Arena. As always, Crossroads is accepting donations of clothing and money. Remember, your $ 1 buys $ 14 worth of food from the North Texas Food Bank and we have been serving additional people who have come to Crossroads as a result of being displaced.

As followers of Christ, we know that we are called to assist our neighbors in their time of need. This time, our neighbors are fellow United States citizens suffering from one of the worst natural disasters in the history of our nation. Please help us to help them.

With God's grace and the compassion of Christ, we can help these people re-build their lives. I am thanking you in advance for your caring and help in this matter. And remember; please join me in continuing to pray.

Yours in Christ,





Dr. John F. Fiedler

P.S. Also please find the following items of interest:
* article from our Bishop, Rev. Rhymes H. Moncure (below)
* article from the North Texas Disaster Response Team and UMCOR (below)
* specific information on current status of relief support from Rev. Jay Cole, Minister of Outreach (below)
* our radio spot that has been airing on KVIL 103.7FM nad KRLD 1080 AM since Wednesday (below)
* an appeal from Director of Children's Ministries Gretchen Combs (below)
* news releases from the conference office (links at the bottom of the right column of this email)
* United Methodist related links (also at the bottom of the right column of this email)

A message from Bishop Rhymes H. Moncure

My Dear Colleagues:

As I write these words, I share with you a deep sorrow from the upheaval of normalcy as a result of Hurricane Katrina. The devastation is overwhelming. The loss of life and the unknown whereabouts of others sadden our souls. Thousands are homeless.

I call upon all United Methodists in the North Texas Annual Conference to enter into prayer for our sisters and brothers, especially those at ground zero of this tragedy, as well as those whose spirits are anxious as they await word about their family and friends.

While the needs are incalculable, as United Methodists, response is in our DNA. In addition to prayer, I invite the people called United Methodists to begin to contribute special monetary offerings for efforts toward relief.

All monies received will go to this endeavor. There will be other needs as events unfold. Extended hands, generous hearts, and our great God will get us through.

Rhymes H. Moncure, Jr.
Resident Bishop, Dallas Area
The United Methodist Church
 
A message from the North Texas Conference Disaster Response Team & UMCOR
We are all deeply concerned about those who are suffering because the recent hurricanes, especially Katrina, and our generous response is needed as the disaster response moves through the three phases - which are Rescue, Relief, and Recovery.

The Rescue Phase is accomplished by those who have been trained and equipped, such as Fire Rescue Teams, Police Officers, Emergency Rescue Teams, Medical Teams, Emergency Management Teams, etc. Much of the area affected by hurricane Katrina is still in the Rescue Phase.

During this time, we can be most helpful by collecting financial donations, and assembling Health Kits and Flood Buckets. Information on how to do this can be found on the UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) website: www.umcor.org.

Financial donations can be sent to the Conference Office to fund #276. Make checks out to Treasurer, North Texas Conference, P.O. Box 516069, Dallas, TX 75251-6069.

Thousands of volunteers will be needed during the Relief and Long-term Recovery stages, which could be weeks away for some areas. We hope to send hundreds of volunteer teams from the North Texas Conference when we receive the necessary approvals to enter the disaster areas.

There is a desperate need for bottled water at this time, and we're now working to help provide this basic need. Again, your financial gifts can help make this happen.

Evacuees and refugees are now arriving in Dallas by the hundreds. Red Cross shelters are filling fast. Some of our congregations may be contacted by the Red Cross to become shelters. Wesley UMC, Sulphur Springs has become such a Red Cross Center. Presently, Wesley is housing 50 persons, but leaders are expecting that number to grow to 250 by this weekend.

Most of these persons are arriving without a place to go, without food, without money, without jobs and with only what they've been able to get in their vehicle. Some have nothing to return to, and many could well become permanent residents.

We are being called upon to show unforgettable generosity and hospitality right now, even within our Conference, to victims of Katrina. Updated information will be sent to our pastors and churches, and this information can be found on our Conference: www.ntcumc.org

This will be a long-term disaster response effort, which could last more than four years.

Thank you for your compassion, your desire to assist, and your prayers. All are desperately needed.

Rev. Duane VanGiesen
Disaster Response Coordinator
972-490-3438 or vangiesen@ntcumc.org

Rev. Kathryn Strempke
United Methodist Committee on Relief
940-321-6100, kstrempke@lakecitiesumc.org

Katrina Crisis and What You Can Do to Help

Crossroads Community Services is assisting refugees from the Hurricane Katrina crisis. This week 13 people came to C.C.S. -- 3 were children -- needing food and clothing. C.C.S. donated over one thousand pounds of food to St. Luke's United Methodist Church. The donated food provided over 800 adult meals. C.C.S. can and will help the refugees with food, clothing, and transportation assistance, as well as our Community Voicemail program.

Community Voicemail allows each person to have their own answering service, with their own personal number. This allows employers, potential employers, doctors, family members, etc. to make dignified contact with these people in a timely manner. The City of Dallas 211 service has all of the above information, and they know we are happy to make our goal setting/strategy planning workshop available to any and all who would like to take it. Our structured approach to goal-setting and strategic planning will be very helpful for persons who are in crisis and a time of need, and will create structure for critical path thinking when emotions are running so high.

Hines Nut Company will pick up the extra food for us, and will even make additional deliveries on a limited basis for the North Texas Food Bank, to other agencies during this time of crisis. Chris Hines is incredible.

If we receive additional FEMA funds, we have the infrastructure in place to assist the refugees with financial assistance for deposit, rent, and utility assistance. Jay Cole has contacted FEMA (our largest source of federal money) to see if they want us to assist them.

The North Texas Food Bank will be receiving additional emergency food above and beyond the food they normally distribute for Dallas residents. We are on the list of agencies to receive the additional food.

There are multiple ways to give. You can give to UMCOR, where the monies will be used in the devastated areas. You can give to FirstChurch, where the monies will be used locally to provide food, clothing, and transportation for those families who have been relocated to Dallas.

It is our hope and prayer that First Church members will respond generously! There will be a table in the Narthex where volunteers will accept your donation. Also, our communion offering this Sunday will be donated to this cause. Make checks payable to FUMC, and note "Katrina Relief" on your check.
 
Dr. John F. Fiedler Speaks to the Metroplex on Air
Airing on KVIL 103.7 FM and KRLD 1080 AM

"As we see the horrific images of damage and destruction of the hurricane, these words in the book of Genesis came to mind:

6 After 40 days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made, 7 and he sent out a raven. It went back and forth until the waters had dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see whether the water on the earth's surface had gone down, 9 but the dove found no resting place for her foot. She returned to him in the ark because water covered the surface of the whole earth. He reached out and brought her into the ark to himself. 10 So Noah waited seven more days and sent out the dove from the ark again. 11 When the dove came to him at evening, there was a plucked olive leaf in her beak. So Noah knew that the water on the earth's surface had gone down. 12 After he had waited another seven days, he sent out the dove, but she did not return to him again.
(Genesis 8:6-12.)

Our prayers are with the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast as they come to grips with the terrible devastation of Hurricane Katrina. We send forth the dove of hope and restoration knowing that the day will come when that dove need not return again. For it will find new life.

I'm John Fiedler, First United Methodist Church in the heart of downtown Dallas."

A messagae from Gretchen Combs, Director of Children's Ministries
I have received a call from Sue Anne Spencer (FUMC member) regarding the relocation of 500 foster children from LA to here. These children have been through so much that Refugee House is trying to find families to house these foster childen for a short time.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, please contact Dr. Michele Gorman at 972-478-4393 for more information.

Protect me, O Lord,
My boat is so small,
And your sea is so big.
- Breton Fishermen's Prayer
 
What Can I Do NOW?
Financial Contributions

Of course financial contributions are needed. There are several ways to designate your gift:

- Make your check out to First United Methodist Church (FUMC)

* reference Crossroads Hurricane Relief Fund in the memo line in order to contribute to Crossroads Community Services' local efforts toward relief for hurricane victims.

* reference United Methodist Committee On Relief (UMCOR) in order to contribute to the United Methodist Church's efforts toward relief for hurricane victims.

- OR -

- Make your check out directly to United Methodist Committee On Relief (UMCOR)

PLEASE NOTE:
Any check that references UMCOR in any way will be sent directly to UMCOR.
 
Continue Donating to CCS!

Although we can't take donations to Reunion Arena to help there, Crossroads Community Services is still -- AS ALWAYS -- collecting clothing items and toilettries that can go to victims who have been relocated to Dallas.

Keep donating to CCS to help these guests in their time of need!
 
Special Links to More Information
Click on any of the following to see their websites:

- Hurricane Katrina Disaster Resources - City of Dallas Office of Emergency Management

- FEMA website

- American Red Cross website

- International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM)

- Volunteer Center of North Texas - coordinating all volunteers at Reunion Arena

United Methodist Links

- North Texas Conference website - important information posted frequently on North Texas Disaster Relief Response

- Give NOW to UMCOR Hurricane Relief

- UMCOR Emergency Appeal for Health Kits, Water, and Blankets

How to Help
Please give generously to UMCOR's Hurricanes 2005 Global, Advance #982523. Your tax-deductible gift may be placed in United Methodist church offering plates or sent directly to: UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068. Checks should be written to UMCOR.You can also donate online or make a credit card donation by calling 1-800-554-8583.

There is an urgent need for both health kits and flood buckets. These collections of everyday items help families recover during the early days after a major disaster. The health kits contain items such as a toothbrush, wash cloth, and soap. The flood buckets contain items like gloves, household cleaners, and bleach to help people clean their homes to make them livable again.

For information on how to assemble and send these important items, call UMCOR Sager Brown at 1-800-814-8765 or visit UMCOR's emergency kits webpage. Send your completed flood buckets and health kits to UMCOR Sager Brown at 101 Sager Brown Road, Baldwin, LA 70514. You may also give a financial donation to to UMCOR's Material Resource Ministry, Advance #901440 to purchase cleaning supplies that the Depot staff and volunteers will use to assemble health kits and flood buckets.

Volunteers: Volunteers will be needed to help in Hurricane Katrina recovery. To find out how you can help with hurricane cleanup, contact your United Methodist Volunteers in Mission jurisdictional and annual conference coordinators. A list of these coordinators is available on the web at http://gbgm-umc.org/vim/vimcoords.htm or write Mission Volunteers at voluntrs@gbgm-umc.org for contact information. They will provide details on creating and training a team as well as scheduling details. For information on what disaster sites are currently scheduling volunteers, call the Volunteer Hotline at 800-918-3100.
 

 
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