HURRICANE RELIEF

Our prayers continue for the Church of the Brethren communities and others in Florida following the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian recently, and with those who later felt the effects in the Carolinas and elsewhere, as well as those affected earlier by Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico. The following update was shared in the denomination's Newsline, with ways to help at the bottom:

Brethren Disaster Ministries staff and the Atlantic Southeast District leadership are continuing to reach out to affected churches and communities to learn of the impact of the storm and the needs that have developed. There were no immediate reports of injury among church members, but there was news of minor damage in two churches. While most other churches were unaffected, news had not yet been received from two churches in Fort Myers and Naples, the hardest-hit areas, at the time of the report.

Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) volunteers prepared to deploy to Florida at the request of the American Red Cross. It was anticipated that two CDS teams would serve in the locations with the highest need after the initial chaos of the crisis, being stationed in shelters to work with the children and families affected by the hurricane. Additional teams will be deployed in Florida and other areas on the southeast coast, if needed.

Brethren Disaster Ministries expects to support the shipping of clean-up supplies and other Church World Service kits as part of the early relief efforts. Staff also will monitor needs for assistance with clean-up efforts in communities where Church of the Brethren congregations are located, while preparing to support long-term recovery efforts in Florida.

Donations can be made to the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) for hurricane response, go to www.brethren.org/givehurricaneresponse. Clean-up buckets and hygiene kits also are needed, go to www.cwskits.org for lists of kit contents and instructions. Kits should be sent to the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.