wfn.org | CRC NEWS: Hand-up approach gives tsunami survivors homes, hope

["Henry Hess" <hessh@crcna.ca>]

BURLINGTON, ON - One year after the devastating tsunami, thousands in
Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka have worked alongside the Christian
Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC) to restore their homes, jobs and
communities- and gained a new sense of hope in the process.

CRWRC has been working with tsunami survivors in India, Indonesia and
Sri Lanka since that day after the wave hit.  CRWRC's relatively small
size and its "hand-up" rather than handout approach to aid work have
proved a strong resource.

"Our size has allowed us to work very closely with local communities and
leaders to learn what the local needs are and structure our programs
accordingly," says Jacob Kramer, international relief team leader for
CRWRC.

"Communities are very much involved in the planning, designing and
building of their own houses," states Grace Wiebe, tsunami relief
project manager at CRWRC. "It increases the sense of ownership and aids
in the healing process."

"The enthusiasm and heightened confidence people are feeling by building
their own houses has been truly wonderful," says Kramer, adding that by
the tsunami anniversary date CRWRC will have built more than 1,200
temporary and permanent houses for tsunami survivors.

In India, the Dalits - or "untouchables" were most victimized by the
great wave. CRWRC built temporary houses for these people and in the
process shed some light on the plight of those considered the lowest
persons in the Indian caste system.

"Civil society organizations are taking notice of the Dalits," says
Kramer. "They are finally starting to come out of the shadows of
neglect."

CRWRC has also helped restore work for tsunami survivors by providing
nets and boats to fishermen, clearing land and turning it into
productive fields of peanuts and chili peppers, restoring shrimp ponds
and providing tools of the trade like sewing machines to embroidery
businesses and motorcycle cabs to taxi drivers.

To arrange an interview with Grace Wiebe or Jacob Kramer please call Val
Henschel at 905-336-2920, x. 298.

For more information about these programs, please visit www.crwrc.org or
call 1-800-730-3490.  CRWRC is a Christian, non-profit organization of
the Christian Reformed Church in North America. With a bi-national home
office base in Burlington, Ontario and Grand Rapids, MI, CRWRC provides
a ministry of development, relief, and justice education to people in
need around the world.	CRWRC is currently active in 30 countries, and
has an international reputation for "helping people help themselves."

-30-

...................

Henry Hess

Director of Communications

The Christian Reformed Church

To learn more about the Christian Reformed Church visit www.crcna.org