Disaster relief groups prepare for the long haul
by Bob Smietana
(This content is written and produced by Religion News Service and distributed by The Associated Press. RNS and AP partner on some religion news content. RNS is solely responsible for this story.)
(RNS) — This past Sunday, worshippers returned to Biltmore Church, a megachurch in Asheville, North Carolina, for the first time in person after Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina. It was bittersweet, said Bruce Frank, the church’s pastor. People were glad to be together, even as many are still grieving. “There is a lot of loss,” Frank said simply in his sermon....
Two hours away, in Boone, North Carolina, staff and volunteers from Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical humanitarian group led by the evangelist Franklin Graham, have been working to clear debris, set up water filtration systems and deliver food and other supplies by helicopter to communities cut off by the storm.
SOC Disaster Team Responds
Compiled by Stephanie Leichman
WNCA Registrar / Office Manager
In meeting with United Church of Christ, National Ministries, Minister for Disaster Response and Recovery, and the Southern Conference Disaster Response Team, we can pass along what we have so far.
Opportunities to respond:
As we continue to pray for and support those who have experienced unimaginable loss this past week, we invite you to support the UCC’s recovery efforts. Katie Howe, Minister for Disaster Response and Recovery - UCC Global H.O.P.E., suggested three basic ways to respond, namely (1) donate money, (2) assemble hygiene kits to replenish supplies, and (3) be aware of the cleanup hot line.
Hurricane Helene Recovery Appeal: The National Ministries of the United Church of Christ has a long history of supporting communities as they recover from disaster and their plight fades from the headlines. Your support of this appeal will ensure that communities are supported and accompanied for years as they rebuild. Donate HERE
Hygiene and Cleanup Bucket assembly: One of the biggest requests is the need for cleanup buckets. UCC congregations interested in assembling cleanup buckets are eligible for a matching grant through the Global HOPE office.
Crisis Cleanup phone banking: One of the greatest needs in the aftermath of a catastrophic disaster is situational awareness and information gathering. Crisis Cleanup is looking for volunteers to help input cases into their dashboard. This dashboard is used by response organizations to efficiently coordinate and deploy immediate resources. If you are interested in this remote volunteer opportunity, please sign up here
For those who HAVE BEEN AFFECTED:
There are resources available from National UCC, if you and / or your community have been affected, and want more information on how to get these to you, please contact Stephanie Leichman.
WNCA has solidarity grants that can support the important work that you are doing in your community. We also have the ability to request hygiene kits and clean up buckets if needed through Church World Service, however we will need to be mindful of how we will get them to you. Please direct all requests through Stephanie Leichman at Western North Carolina Association. Her e-mail is: office@wnca-soc.org
Here is a link to the application: https://app.smarterselect.com/programs/94267-United-Church-Of-Christ
If there's a request for CWS Hygiene kits or Clean Up buckets you can fill out this form: Request Kits - CWS Kits
Read first hand reports from pastors living in the wake of the Hurricane
Disaster Response
submitted by Rev. Bob Edwards
Pastor, Bayside Christian Church (EVA)
Crisis Cleanup phone banking: One of the greatest needs in the aftermath of a catastrophic disaster is knowing where the needs are. Crisis Cleanup is a central place where folks with needs can give their information and it will be shared with organizations who can assist them. Whether it’s a need for food and water, or for trees to be cut, roofs tarped—Crisis Cleanup coordinates this information and shares it with response organizations who can respond.
Right now, Crisis Cleanup has a backlog of approximately 5,000 calls, as well as more calls coming in every hour. They are in dire need of folks who can speak with the persons calling (or return messages to those who have called in) and enter their information into the tracking system so disaster response volunteers can respond to the need.
This is something you can do from home if you have a phone and internet access. If you are interested in this important volunteer opportunity, you can sign up here.
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