wfn.org | Camp Noah Serves Lutheran Children in Puerto Rico

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

July 6, 2001

CAMP NOAH SERVES LUTHERAN CHILDREN IN PUERTO RICO
01-183-MM*

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Camp Noah, a week-long day camp for children
who were survivors of natural disasters, expanded its services to
meet the needs of children affected by flooding earlier this spring
in Puerto Rico .  The June 24-30 camp was funded in part by the
Church World Service, a relief and development agency of the National
Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and local congregations.
     Lutheran Disaster Response, a ministry of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod,
works in partnership with Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota which
trains and supports local interfaith and Lutheran partners to provide
Camp Noah, said Johanna Olson, assistant for domestic disaster
response, ELCA Division for Church in Society, Chicago.
      The camp served 43 children in grades kindergarten through
six in Puerto Rico.  As with Camp Noah programs in the past,
activities included worship, crafts and a disaster study done by a
meteorologist who "helped children understand how and why this
disaster occurred where they live," said Olson.
     "This is the first time Camp Noah was done in Spanish and in
Puerto Rico," Olson said.  There was one counselor for about every
seven children. The counselors were all volunteers trained in "the
dynamics of what a child is going through.  They had to look at the
disaster situation the way a child would see these things," said
Olson.  Also present at the camp was a mental-health worker to help
the children cope with the disaster.
     "During the camp the children are given the opportunity to tell
their stories," Olson said.  "The value of telling a story is that it
brings healing.  By sharing a story, you become more at peace and
accept that life has changed and there are new opportunities ahead,"
she said.
     Children are also reminded of "the promise of the rainbow," an
understanding that "the abundance of Christ's love is with them
always," Olson said.  "This is essential in healing.  In one of the
craft projects, children paint rocks that they can always keep with
them.  They can put them on their desks at school or in their
pockets.  This serves as a reminder that God is with them at all
times.  We want the children to understand that if they trust and
believe that God is with them, they will be all right," said Olson.
     Over the next two weeks in July, Camp Noah will be offered in
other areas of Puerto Rico.
     Camp Noah, developed by Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota
for Lutheran Disaster Response, was created in 1997 when heavy winter
storms produced floods in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
It is named after Noah of the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.
"Camp Noah is the story of Noah's ark through the eyes of a child,"
said Olson.  In the story, Noah built an ark in which he, his family
and living creatures of every kind survived a worldwide flood.
     Olson said Camp Noah is a very unique program.  "It's the only
program of its kind that seeks to address the long-term needs of a
child," she said.
     "After these disasters, fun for children is forgotten.  Camp
Noah offers safe and recreational outlets and a chance to remember
and reflect on what has happened and how they deal with it," Olson
said.
        In addition to Puerto Rico, Camp Noah will be offered in
Hoisington, Kan., July 30- Aug. 3 and Aug 6-10.  It will also be
offered in Texas for survivors of Tropical Storm Allison.
--
More information on Camp Noah can be found at
http://www.elca.org/dcs/disaster/campnoah.html on the Web.

*Michelle Mills is a senior at Bradley University, Peoria, Ill.  This
summer she is an intern with ELCA News & Information.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html