Sudan: Calls for Prayers and Peace
The death of newly-elected vice president,
Dr. John Garang has raised new concerns regarding the recent peace accord
between northern and southern Sudan. A member of the southern Dinka ethnic
group, Garang was a key player in the peace agreement that was forged last
month. "Let us pray that the peace accord will be respected despite
this great tragedy," said the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive of
the General Board of Global Ministries.
UMCOR program activities are located in Darfur, in the western portion of Sudan. Thus far UMCOR offices in Darfur and the capital city of Sudan (Khartoum) have not been affected.
Please pray for the Methodist churches in southern Sudan and for the UMCOR workers as they seek to serve the most vulnerable in difficult circumstances. Your gifts to UMCOR Advance #184385, Sudan Emergency, will support UMCOR's important work there.
Health: End Malaria
A new United Methodist ministry of malaria control will mobilize existing church-related medical facilities and their personnel to strike out against malaria. The community-based initiative will launch its pilot program in Sierra Leone -- a West African nation with a strong United Methodist network and a big malaria problem.
Malaria is spread by the anopheles mosquito which can transfer the malaria-causing parasite through its bites. Controlling the mosquito population is the biggest obstacle in malaria prevention. "Malaria control can be as simple as using a treated mosquito net," said Paul Dirdak, UMCOR director. The agency is also experimenting with other solutions.
You can help! Support United Methodist efforts to help end Malaria through UMCOR Advance #982009, Malaria Control.
Learn more about this new program: A new print-friendly bulletin insert on the United Methodist response to malaria is ready for your use on the UMCOR website: http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/print/bulletininserts/malaria.cfm. Share it in a worship service, church school class, or other setting at your church. Also, see the special section on malaria control in this week's issue of the United Methodist Reporter. Follow this link to view the latest edition http://www.reporterinteractive.org. Available Wednesday, August 3, 2005.
Bosnia: 100 Families Return to Srebrenica
UMCOR in Bosnia and Herzegovina reconstructed 100 homes in Srebrenica. They helped 100 families (325 people) who had been living as refugees return to the new houses in the place they had once called home.
The UMCOR field office opened in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1993 to provide relief supplies to the war affected population. Since that time UMCOR's work has expanded to assist the local population to rebuild their lives and go back to their homes.
Donations to UMCOR Advance #982353, Global Peace Building and Reconciliation, will help people all over the world return to their homes and heal from war.
Niger: Emergency Food Appeal
The desperate struggle for sustenance continues in Niger. The current food crisis is the result of a combination of factors: drought, poverty, and locusts. In normal years, August is a month where many go hungry as they await September's harvest. This year is much worse as some villages are seeing as many as half of their children suffer from malnutrition.
UMCOR is responding by sending food assistance to 55 villages in southern Niger where starvation and malnourishment have become epidemic. UMCOR is partnering with Swiss Interchurch AID, known as HEKS, which has long-term commitments in Niger. HEKS will use an UMCOR grant to provide seeds, cattle fodder, and staple foods in the southern region of the country.
"Due to faithful year-round giving to the All Africa Drought and Famine Advance, we're able to make this rapid response," said Kristin Sachen, who heads UMCOR's emergency services office. Your gifts will support UMCOR's continuing response. Please give to UMCOR Advance #101250, All Africa Drought and Famine, Niger.
Zimbabwe: A Coordinated Response
UMCOR is participating in a coordinated response through faith-based agencies in Zimbabwe to care for the thousands of people displaced by the urban clean-up campaign, Operation Restore Order. Those whose homes were bulldozed in the campaign are living in transit camps that are poorly equipped to meet basic needs.
Your gifts can make a big difference. For example: $6.00 feeds a malnourished child supplemental porridge for 90 days $35.00 provides a warm winter blanket during these cold months $16.50 purchases enough maize, vegetable oil, and beans for one person for 90 days $454.00 buys a temporary toilet $1,000.00 supports the services of a community psychologist for one month
Your gifts do make a difference! Please give to UMCOR Advance #199456, Zimbabwe Emergency to support this important work.
UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out more about UMCOR's ministries, please visit http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/ . You can donate to any project by placing a contribution in the offering plate at a local United Methodist church; by sending a check to UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068; or by calling 1-800-554-8583, where credit card donations are accepted. UMCOR is exempt from tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors.
And, please pray for those who are hungry, displaced, sick or in poverty because of these and other natural and human-made disasters, and for the workers who minister to them.