wfn.org | New Jersey Methodists continue Sept. 11 response

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

Jan. 11, 2002  News media contact: Linda Bloom7(212) 870-38037New York
10-21-71B{007}

By United Methodist News Service

As frightened workers from the World Trade Center area fled across the
Hudson River on Sept. 11, the Rev. June Stitzinger-Clark was among those
meeting the ferries on the New Jersey side.

She and other disaster response team members of the United Methodist Greater
New Jersey Annual (regional) Conference immediately acted that day, serving
at emergency operations centers and sharing information with conference
clergy and staff. A day later, the Rev. Robert J. Duncan, Jr., disaster
response coordinator, met with Bishop Alfred Johnson and his cabinet to
determine a plan.

Within a short time, the conference had begun pastoral care training events
for clergy in every district. Worship resources were prepared for local
churches, fund-raising appeals - raising nearly half a million dollars to
date -- made for the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) and
trauma-related programs planned for children.

Now, in a state where an estimated 40 percent of those affected by the
events of Sept. 11 live, United Methodists are preparing a plan for their
long-range response to terrorism and its aftermath. Duncan said the
conference would make a proposal to UMCOR on Jan. 28 for funding support,
and it has made a preliminary request of $100,000 to cover its programs.

"It's really hard in New Jersey because there's no hole to go look at and no
shelter where families are and no single community affected," he explained.
Because of that, Duncan and the bishop are developing a theology of
"ministry to the unseen" to accompany the plan.

The denomination is well suited for outreach, having one administrative
structure for the entire state and a place of worship in every county. "If
connection is part of our unique heritage and strength, then we should do
something that ripples out," he said.

The conference also wants to address the toll from the continuing fallout of
Sept. 11. Daily coverage of the war in Afghanistan, new reports of attempted
terrorism and visible signs of tightened security in the United States, as
well as related issues such as the fear of anthrax or even smallpox
contamination, have had an impact.

Duncan said they hope to address this concern through "family coping
seminars" based on a curriculum developed at Drew University for USAID for
work with families in the Ukraine following the Chernobyl disaster. Duncan
is director of theological admissions for the United Methodist-related
university in Madison.

Providing information and interpretation about other faith traditions is
another goal, he added, along with the desire to help people cope with the
long-term question of "How do we cope with life now that everything has
changed?" 

A major emphasis of the Greater New Jersey Conference is its work with other
faith groups to reach a wider number of people. Stitzinger-Clark, pastor of
Atlantic Highlands and Navesink United Methodist churches, and Brenda
Beavers of the Salvation Army serve as co-chairpersons of New Jersey
Interfaith.

Based at the Food Bank of New Jersey in Hillside, New Jersey Interfaith is
developing short- and long-term goals and is in the process of hiring a
full-time administrative assistant. The organization's initial focus was to
identify those who had lost a loved one or who had an injured family member.
But much of that work, according to Stitzinger-Clark, is already done, and
plenty of resources have been directed to those families. "The reality is
that there are other population groups that are not going to have the same
resources," she noted.

Some may not even recognize themselves as victims of the terrorist attack.
"The best estimates of mental health professionals is within six months a
significant number of high-stress trauma responses will probably be evident
in the population," Stitzinger-Clark said, adding that people who have not
received help so far may need mental health support. "They may be the people
who ran to the ferries that day and saw people jumping out of windows (in
the twin towers)."

New Jersey Interfaith will examine populations not served by other agencies,
including jobless and undocumented people, and focus its case management on
those families. The organization also plans to develop an information and
referral clearinghouse, provide trauma response training, respond to issues
of racial or ethnic bias and possibly set up a ministry for commuters. 

Current participants in New Jersey Interfaith also represent the Lutherans,
Presbyterians, Episcopalians, United Church of Christ, American Baptists,
Seventh-day Adventists, Reformed, and Unitarians, along with the Islamic
Society of New Jersey, Jewish Social Services, Catholic Social Services,
Church World Service, the Urban League and members of the Hindu and Sikh
communities. Other agencies serve as resources. 

Donations for the efforts in New Jersey and other areas in response to Sept.
11 and its aftermath can be made to UMCOR Advance No. 901125-3, "Love in the
Midst of Tragedy." Checks so designated may be placed in church collection
plates or mailed to UMCOR at 475 Riverside Dr., Room 330, New York, NY
10115. Credit-card contributions can be made by calling (800) 554-8583.
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United Methodist News Service
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