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December 19, 2008
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
What a year! In the early spring, it seemed like tornadoes were going to
be the main cause of human need for the year. According to the National Weather
Service, there were at least 500 more tornadoes in 2008 than in 2007. Then, the
summer brought widespread flooding across the Midwest, where some places
experienced 100-year, and even 500-year, flood levels. In Iowa alone, over
40,000 households registered for assistance through FEMA. The late summer
brought one of the most active Atlantic hurricane seasons in recorded history.
For the first time ever, six consecutive named storms made U.S. landfall,
including the four distinct landfalls of Tropical Storm Fay which caused watches
or warnings for the entire Florida coast. Along the way, there was an earthquake
and wildfires. And all of this was competing for media attention with a
Presidential election and the unfolding of a damaging recession.
Considering all of these things, it might seem that this was a difficult
year for Lutheran Disaster Response as a ministry. But though it was not without
its challenges, this year was incredible and notable less for the number of
disasters and more for the incredible way in which local Lutherans, and Lutheran
congregations, stood up and served as Lutheran Disaster Response for their
communities. In the midst of one disaster after another, we learned of the
courage, strength, and perseverance of Lutherans around the country, and their
willingness to be the first form of this ministry to their neighbors in need.
Here are just a few examples:
- Members of Lutheran congregations from around the Twin Cities showed up
in droves to clean-up and rebuild the community of Hugo after a devastating
tornado. LDR coordinator Cindy Johnson and her staff coordinated nearly 1,000
volunteers the weekend following the storm.
- Pastor Bill Doubek, of First Lutheran Church (LCMS) in Neosho, Missouri,
organized a "God's Can Do Kids" camp for children in the community to receive
pastoral care after a tornado.
- Members of Grace Lutheran Church in Ripon, Wisconsin and St. Stephen
Lutheran Church in Wausau (both ELCA) assembled flood buckets to distribute to
households in their area who needed assistance in cleaning up their flooded
basements.
- Trinity Lutheran Church in Mason City, Iowa (ELCA) served with great
distinction in its community, thanks in large part to the important disaster
preparedness training and organization that they had done before the storm even
happened. To read about their excellent plan, visit www.lutheranservices.org/disaster_plan.
- Following Hurricane Gustav, Trinity Lutheran Church (LCMS) in Baton
Rouge, Louisiana housed over 100 people, including at least 60 children, who had
been evacuated from their homes. Members of the church provided child care so
that the adult evacuees could continue to work and care for their homes.
- Members of the Lutheran Campus Ministry at Rice University, under the
leadership of Pastor Brad Fuerst, cooked a supply of food that otherwise would
have gone bad and served it to members of their community who were without meals
during the power outages.
Thank you to all of these -- and the many others -- who were Lutheran
Disaster Response for their communities exactly when it was needed most. To
learn more about how you and your congregation can be Lutheran Disaster Response
in the New Year and beyond, visit www.ldr.org. The staff of Lutheran Disaster
Response wishes you blessings of great joy as we await, with Advent
anticipation, the coming of our Lord Jesus, and we look forward to continuing to
work in creative and exciting ways with you in the year to come.
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