wfn.org | Newsline: Brethren earthquake response shapes up, feeding program begins

[CoBNews <CoBNews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service, News Director Cheryl

Brumbaugh-Cayford, 800-323-8039 ext. 260, cobnews@brethren.org

CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN EARTHQUAKE RESPONSE SHAPES

UP IN HAITI, CHILDREN'S FEEDING PROGRAM BEGINS

(Jan. 29, 2010) Elgin, IL -- Roy Winter, executive director of Brethren

Disaster Ministries, has announced a comprehensive Church of the Brethren

response to the Haiti earthquake. The effort will include a feeding program

to be based with Eglise des Freres Haitiens (Haitian Church of the Brethren )

>in Port-au-Prince.

The feeding of children already has begun through the Haitian Brethren.

Winter returned to the United States on Jan. 26, after he witnessed the fir st

weeks of recovery following the earthquake in Haiti. He was part of a

delegation of four representing the US Church of the Brethren, who experien ced

first-hand the devastation in and around Port-au-Prince.

The basic needs are great, Winter reported. To be efficient and effective,  a

comprehensive response for the Brethren community in Haiti is being develop ed.

This is being done in consultation with the National Committee of Eglise de s

Freres Haitiens by Winter and Brethren Disaster Ministries, the church's Gl obal

Mission Partnerships program and executive director Jay Wittmeyer, and Jeff

Boshart, coordinator of the church's home rebuilding program in Haiti. The

rebuilding program has been working in Haiti for more than a year, respondi ng

to the four hurricanes and tropical storms that hit the island in 2008.

"We are working on a five-stage feeding program," Winter said. "The first s tep

is a school feeding program, which started on Jan. 25. The school is in Por t-au-Prince

and is named Paul Lochard No. 2 school. Approximately 500 children, some of

which are 'restevec' children (children given as slaves by families too poo r to

>feed them) are provided one hot meal a day."

Seventeen teachers have been put back to work to help with the program. Sev eral

of the teachers are Haitian Brethren pastors, including Jean Bily Telfort,  general

secretary of Eglise des Freres Haitiens. The school is not officially open  for

teaching, but is providing food and care for the children, many of whom are  now

>homeless.

In the coming week, food rations will be provided to communities around the

three Haitian Brethren congregations in the greater Port-au-Prince area: th e

Delmas 3 Church, Marin Church, and Croix-de-Bouquets Church.

The Material Resources ministry at the Brethren Service Center in New Winds or,

Md., continues to respond to the earthquake with shipments of relief materi als

on behalf of Church World Service (CWS), Lutheran World Relief (LWR), and

IMA World Health. The ministry is led by director Loretta Wolf.

As of yesterday morning, the Brethren Service Center's entire stock of hygi ene

kits had been shipped to Haiti, and there is a great need for more.

An air-freight shipment from the Brethren Service Center arrived in the Dom inican

Republic on Jan. 22 containing 500 lightweight blankets, 1,125 baby care ki ts--

some CWS baby care kits and some from partner LWR; 10,595 hygiene kits--

most from CWS and 325 from LWR; 720 tubes of toothpaste from LWR; and

>25 flashlights with batteries.

Shipments also are going out by ocean freight to the DR with additional bla nkets

and kits. Sixty IMA World Health medicine boxes have been shipped by air fr eight,

each containing enough essential medicines and medical supplies to treat th e

routine illnesses of about 1,000 adults and children.

Church of the Brethren staff also are working to develop a new household ki t for

Haiti. The kit will include kitchen essentials and a simple water purificat ion

system. Information on this new kit program will be available soon.

Go to www.brethren.org/HaitiEarthquake for more about the Brethren relief e ffort

for Haiti, including links to video of the work at the Brethren Service Cen ter

(provided by videographer David Sollenberger); video of Winter reporting on

the situation in Haiti; a Haiti blog including reports from the Brethren de legation;

>and more.

Also at www.brethren.org/HaitiEarthquake are a variety of ways to help out,

including instructions for donating the desperately needed hygiene kits; an  offering

of prayers for Haiti; online donations to the church's Emergency Disaster F und

(or send checks by mail to Emergency Disaster Fund, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin ,

IL 60120); and a bulletin insert suitable for Sunday morning worship, to he lp

>inform congregations of the church response.

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to continu ing

the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its faith in com munity.

The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith traditions an d is one

of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrated its 300th anniversary i n 2008.

It counts some 125,000 members across the United States and Puerto Rico, an d has

missions and sister churches in Nigeria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ha iti, and

>India.

(Kathleen Campanella, director of public relations for the Brethren Service  Center,

>contributed this report.)

># # #

>For more information contact:

>Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford

>Director of News Services

>Church of the Brethren

>1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120

>800-323-8039 ext. 260

>cobnews@brethren.org