wfn.org | UMNS# 568-Worldwide Methodist community responds to relief effort

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Worldwide Methodist community responds to relief effort

Oct. 7, 2005

NOTE: Photographs and a related report, UMNS story #569, are available
at http://umns.umc.org.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - Louisiana native and United Methodist News
Service reporter Kathy Gilbert was on assignment in Liberia when
Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast.

Upon learning where she was from, the children of Reeves Memorial United
Methodist Church in Monrovia presented Gilbert with a $20 donation "to
help the children of Louisiana."

"In a country where 80 percent of the population lives below the poverty
line, $20 is a fortune," Gilbert said.

Such stories abound in times of tragedy, further evidence of the
denomination's connectional nature.

The United Methodist Church of Liberia has already contributed money to
Hurricane Katrina relief, as has the Korean Methodist Church. Methodist
women in Korea sent additional donations to assist women and children
affected by the storm.

Bishop Kyung Ha Shin, president of the Korean Church's Council of
Bishops, presented the gift at the opening of a two-day consultation
between Korean church representatives and top officials of the United
Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

"God has given us one heart with the Korean Church in Christian
proclamation and service," said the Rev. R. Randy Day, the board's top
staff executive.

The United Methodist mission arm in Germany also donated to the
hurricane relief efforts of the United Methodist Committee on Relief, a
unit of the Board of Global Ministries.

"We pray for the victims and their families, for those who lost their
houses and belongings, and for all those who work hard to help the
people in that area," said Bishop Rosemarie Wenner of the denomination's
Germany Area, in a letter to her colleagues affected by the storm.

Churches in other countries are also encouraging giving for hurricane
relief.

Methodists in Taiwan sent $20,000 to UMCOR-an amount representing about
$400 per person in the 5,000-person church, known officially as the
Methodist Church in the Republic of China.

Presenting the check in New York, Bishop C.H. Kuey said his church was
praying for "those whose lives have been forever altered by this tragic
disaster" and for those working to restore order in the affected areas.
Day expressed gratitude for the Chinese church's gift and prayers.

The United Methodist Church of Côte d'Ivoire received a special
offering for hurricane relief on Sept. 18. The church also organized an
interfaith worship service to pray for those affected by the storm.

The Methodist Church of England, the Methodist Church of Haiti, the
Methodist Church in Cuba and United Methodist churches in Mozambique
have also collected offerings.

"You and I know that this will only be symbolic, since I think that some
15,000 pesos were collected, but when converted to U.S. dollars it will
be some $625," wrote Bishop Ricardo Pereira of the Methodist Church in
Cuba. "We want to send this message of love to our brothers and sisters.
(That amount equals) 50 percent of one month's salary of all Cuban
pastors."

United Methodist-related Africa University, based in Zimbabwe, has
donated a shipment of bedding - about 15,000 sheets and pillowcases -
originally designated for ministries in Africa, to ongoing efforts to
care and provide for evacuees in Louisiana and Mississippi.

"We know how it feels to lose everything," said Vice Chancellor Rukudzo
Murapa. "We feel honored to be able, out of our meager resources, to
assist persons who need immediate help."

"The response is wonderful," UMCOR communications director Linda Beher
said. "All of our partners in Action by Churches Together International
have expressed solidarity and prayer."

UMCOR is providing two giving numbers through The Advance for Christ and
His Church for hurricane relief. Checks should be made out to UMCOR and
designated for "UMCOR Advance #982523 Hurricane Katrina" or "UMCOR
Advance #901323 Hurricane Rita." Both numbers or one number and the word
"both" can be given for general assistance.

Tax-deductible checks may be placed in church offering plates or mailed
directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Credit-card gifts
can be made by calling (800) 554-8583 or going online to
www.methodistrelief.org.

*This story was compiled by Joey Butler, managing editor of Interpreter
magazine, from United Methodist News Service and United Methodist Board
of Global Ministries reports.

News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.

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United Methodist News Service
Photos and stories also available at:
http://umns.umc.org