June 26, 2008

ELGIN, IL – The Church of the Brethren's Northern Plains District is contributing to the relief work in Iowa following storms and flooding. The Church of the Brethren's Emergency Disaster Fund is giving a grant of $5,000 to Northern Plains District in support of its efforts to assist in cleanup. The fund is a ministry of the Church of the Brethren.

The Emergency Disaster Fund also has given a grant of $5,000 to support the work of Children's Disaster Services in Iowa and Indiana. As of June 25, Children's Disaster Services had seen 230 children in Iowa and about 200 in Indiana. The fund has given an additional $5,000 to the work of Church World Service in parts of Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana.

A report from Northern Plains District shared information about district efforts. Gary Gahm is serving as the district's disaster coordinator, and is fielding requests for assistance and offers of help. Those interested in volunteering with clean-up and rebuilding efforts are invited to contact him at gahmg@juno.com or 712-328-0894 or 712-314-1326.

Gahm explained, "With all the flooding and tornadoes in Iowa there is a lot of clean up to do now and longterm. The goal will be to help as many people as we are able." The grant money will be used to feed and lodge volunteers, purchase tools as needed, and other items to do clean up correctly and safely. The funds also may be used to support local rebuilding efforts or local agencies managing longterm recovery.

Gahm has been working at state-level coordination efforts, and has been trained in the use of a website that has been set up for receiving funds, requests for assistance, and offers of volunteer help. He has been working with Zach Wolgemuth and Jane Yount, staff of Brethren Disaster Ministries, to request the grant money and to begin planning for the longterm volunteer and recovery effort.

In addition, Tim Button-Harrison, interim executive for Northern Plains District, along with Gary Gahm and Zach Wolgemuth, have been participated in conference calls of Iowa church leaders and disaster coordinators to share information and discuss ways to cooperate in providing immediate and longterm relief.

The Northern Plains District Disaster Fund is making grants available to congregations to assist families in need, for general flood relief work of congregations, and for expense reimbursements of volunteers serving on behalf of the district and its churches. The fund urgently needs financial contributions. Contribute to Disaster Fund, Northern Plains District, Church of the Brethren, P.O. Box 493, Ankeny, IA 50021.

The district is emphasizing the great need for Emergency Clean-up Buckets. Go to http://www.churchworldservice.org/kits/cleanup-kits.html for information about contents and how to assemble Emergency Clean-up Bucket kits. Gary Gahm is working with Church World Service to determine a distribution site for buckets in Iowa. The Northern Plains District Conference will hold a buckets collection on July 25-26 at Hammond Avenue Church in Waterloo.

Root River Church of the Brethren near Greenleafton, Minn., also a member of Northern Plains District, has raised $700 for clean-up buckets during Vacation Bible School. With those funds they have assembled 15 kits and will assemble five more. The Hands of Christ Church of the Brethren group in Rochester, Minn., is working with Root River by purchasing items for the kits.

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its faith in community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrates its 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts more than 125,000 members across the United States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister churches in Nigeria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and India.

Church of the Brethren News Service