|
Southwest Texas Conference Team Preparing to go to Haiti
Plans are now being made for a team from the southwwest Texas Conference to go to Haiti later in the year. Judy Hutcherson, UMVIM Co-cordinator for international programs, will be part of a leadership team leaving for Haiti on May 25. She will then serve as the leader of the Conference team.
People interested in being a part of a team from the Southwest Texas Confeence should contact Judy Hutcherson. Her email is Judy Hutcherson <judybhutch@yahoo.com> phone (830-456-7323).
Please note that the following guidelines are being followed when scheduling teams.
Guidelines for Teams going to Haiti
1. All UMVIM teams must sign their team up through the US Haiti Calendaring Coordinator. The US calendaring coordinator will determine the location of where teams will work. Your location will be different due to circumstances.
2. All teams will work on projects which are the priority of the Methodist Church of Haiti.
3. Your team leader must have current team leader training.
4. Your leader must have been to Haiti prior to the earthquake January 12, 2010
5. Teams are to consist of no more than 12 members
6. Teams must purchase accident insurance
7. Teams will be required to have all immunizations up to date
8. It is highly suggested each team have at least one medical person as a part of their team. Some locations will be at least an hour away from hospital care. With more medical persons on a team they can assist in medical assessments in the communities where the teams will be working.
9. Estimated cost of mission is about $50.00 per day plus airfare or about $1500.00 per person or. This will be your transportation to Haiti , food, housing and in country transportation
10. Each team will be expected to raise $ 3,500 in project money. This amount will be matched by UMCOR up to $3000.
11. At this point and time there are only two flights a day into Port au Prince. All teams are required to enter and leave through this city.
Earthquake Update
Recent news from UMCOR on Haiti and Chile
CHILE: UMCOR RESPONDS TO 8.8 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE
After the strongest earthquake in the region in half a century struck central Chile early Saturday, February 27, UMCOR responded with an initial emergency grant to its partners in Chile to help them bring relief to survivors.
The $10,000 grant will help the Methodist Church of Chile (IMECH) and its relief arm, the Methodist Humanitarian Action Team (EMAH), conduct needs assessments and bring water and food to survivors.
Last October, UMCOR dispatched an international disaster response team to Chile to help the Methodist Church there prepare for natural and human-made catastrophes.
Bishop Joel Martinez, interim general secretary of the General Board of Global Ministries, called on “our generous United Methodist constituents to join in the response to the Chile Emergency Advance to strengthen UMCOR’s ability to be fully present with resources.”
Please send your contribution and mark Chile Emergency, UMCOR Advance #3021178 on the memo line. One hundred percent of gifts made to this advance will help the people of Chile.
HAITI: EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY UPDATE
UMCOR Statement of Commitment in Haiti
Three United Methodist Volunteers in Mission (UMVIM) jurisdictional coordinators set their sites on Haiti, representing UMCOR and UMVIM to reinforce connections with the Methodist Church of Haiti (EMH), following the January 12 earthquake in that Caribbean nation.
The jurisdictional coordinators attended EMH’s annual conference in Le Cayes, where they met with circuit superintendents to identify areas of greatest need and discuss how UMVIM and UMCOR might collaborate with them to meet the priorities the superintendents have defined.
Methodist minister and UMCOR consultant Rev. Jim Gulley, a survivor of the earthquake, also was present at the annual conference and delivered a statement and words of encouragement to the conference on behalf of UMCOR. The commitment of time, fiscal and human resources to the people of Haiti was central to Gulley’s presentation. He underscored the importance of a renewed commitment by both UMCOR and EMH as the guarantee of a successful relief effort.
Gulley and the UMVIM team will meet with church leaders throughout their visit, as they determine the most effective ways to deploy volunteers to the region.
Haitian Artisans Offer Help to the Homeless
When the women of the cooperative Haitian Artisans for Peace International (HAPI) set out to build their Peace Park and Playground in Mizak, a village 50 miles south of Port-au-Prince, they meant it to be a safe haven for the community’s children. They never imagined it would become a haven for whole families and their distant relatives left homeless by a massive earthquake.
More than 550 homes in Mizak were damaged or destroyed during the January 12 quake. Like other survivors of the disaster, the people of this small village sought the safety of open fields. As they occupied the Peace Park, they were joined by extended family from the Haitian capital and other affected cities. Soon the women of HAPI found themselves at the center of an emergency relief effort.
“The food we prepared for 500 families was far, far from meeting the need…. We had at least double the families show up. There was no threat of violence, only overwhelming community presence and need,” wrote Valerie Mossman-Celestin, US executive director of HAPI, in an email that underscored the need for continued and coordinated assistance to Haiti.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is helping the artists’ cooperative shore up Peace Park infrastructure, build clean water and sanitation facilities, construct a security wall for access control, and purchase tents for short-term shelter. Read more about HAPI and support UMCOR’s emergency relief and recovery work in Haiti through Haiti Emergency, UMCOR Advance #418325.
UMCOR Haiti Newsletter
You can keep up with UMCOR’s work in Haiti through our Be There. Be Hope. In Haiti. newsletter. Published weekly, the newsletter provides updates of UMCOR’s immediate relief and long-term recovery work in Haiti since the January 12 earthquake. Sign up to receive Be There. Be Hope. In Haiti. via email or look for it at www.umrespond.org each week.
Gifts to support UMCOR’s work can be made online by visiting www.umcorhaiti.org. For gifts by mail, please make checks payable to UMCOR and mail to UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Please indicate Haiti Emergency, UMCOR Advance #418325 on the memo line of your check. One hundred percent of gifts made to this advance will help the people of Haiti.
A letter from Rev. Gesner Paul, President, Eglise Méthodiste d’Haiti
Jan. 28, 2010
On behalf of the Methodist Church in Haiti and the Haitian people, we thank you. Thank you all for your outpouring of love, support and Christian brotherhood in our great hour of need. Haiti has suffered a great tragedy, and to rebuild, recover and strengthen, it will take us all.
You have kept us in your prayers and we are grateful. You have sent donations through the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). We thank you for your generosity. You have expressed your selfless interest in volunteering your time to come to Haiti to help with the recovery effort and we look forward to welcoming you.
In the coming days and weeks, the Methodist Church in Haiti will complete an assessment of the damage and communities impacted by the earthquake, and will prioritize areas for relief and rehabilitation in partnership with UMCOR. Teams of United Methodist Volunteers in Mission will be integral in the long-term recovery of the church and communities in Haiti, and opportunities will soon be available to come and help in meaningful ways.
In the short-term, the immediate needs of providing emergency aid of food, water, shelter and medical care are being addressed by UMCOR and a host of national and international relief organizations and technical specialists. Soon, the work of clearing debris in preparation for rebuilding will be done by teams of locals in cash-for-work programs led by these same aid groups and local community groups, including the Methodist Church in Haiti. The participation of international volunteers is welcome after this initial emergency phase is complete, at which time the Methodist Church in Haiti will work closely with UMCOR and UMVIM to identify rehabilitation projects which match the needs prioritized in the country.
With great appreciation for the outpouring of support and offers to come in person to help volunteer in Haiti as quickly as possible, the Methodist Church in Haiti, in partnership with UMCOR, requests that volunteer teams consider delaying their arrival into Haiti in light of the following:
* The Methodist Church in Haiti and UMCOR are still undertaking assessments evaluations in the 6 circuits most impacted by the earthquake, to determine the extent of the damage in church communities and beyond. Suitable projects and assignments for volunteer teams wishing to contribute to the recovery effort will not be identified until this process is complete.
* The Methodist Church in Haiti and UMCOR are still undertaking assessments evaluations in the 6 circuits most impacted by the earthquake, to determine the extent of the damage in church communities and beyond. Suitable projects and assignments for volunteer teams wishing to contribute to the recovery effort will not be identified until this process is complete.
* The Methodist Guest House is currently being assessed for structural integrity, and will undergo some rehabilitation and reconstruction of the security wall before being brought to full capacity and security to host teams of volunteers. The Methodist Guest House is currently being assessed for structural integrity, and will undergo some rehabilitation and reconstruction of the security wall before being brought to full capacity and security to host teams of volunteers.
* Commercial flights into Haiti are currently suspended and all travel into Haiti must be done via the neighboring Dominican Republic. Once in Haiti, transportation and logistics are further complicated due to the influx of international aid groups and the reality of debris and closed roads. Commercial flights into Haiti are currently suspended and all travel into Haiti must be done via the neighboring Dominican Republic. Once in Haiti, transportation and logistics are further complicated due to the influx of international aid groups and the reality of debris and closed roads.
* The emergency relief and debris removal phase may last at least another one or two months, depending on the severity of the impact to the communities. Volunteers wishing to work on the programs identified as priority by the Methodist Church in Haiti and UMCOR can begin to schedule trips for late March and April, once this initial emergency response and recovery phase is completed. The emergency relief and debris removal phase may last at least another one or two months, depending on the severity of the impact to the communities. Volunteers wishing to work on the programs identified as priority by the Methodist Church in Haiti and UMCOR can begin to schedule trips for late March and April, once this initial emergency response and recovery phase is completed.
* Volunteer teams with pre-existing travel plans to Haiti are urged to reconsider the timing and nature of their trip, in order to allow for re-assessment and prioritization of earthquake recovery programs.
Please continue to communicate with us your interest in volunteering for the recovery effort, and we will connect you with recovery projects and rehabilitation programs as soon as possible. We thank you again for standing by us in this time of great need, and look forward to working in Christian partnership to build a better Haiti.
Blessings,
Rev. Gesner Paul
President, Eglise Méthodiste d’Haiti
How can I help?
Gifts to support UMCOR's Haiti Relief efforts can be made to Haiti Emergency, UMCOR Advance #418325.
Please send your individual or special congregational offering money to:
Treasurer, SWTX Conference
Attention: Haiti Relief
United Methodist Church
16400 Huebner Rd.
San Antonio TX 78248
Gifts can be made online via the General Board of Global Ministries/UMCOR website: http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/umcor/donate.cfm?code=418325&id=3018760
100% of gifts made to this advance will go to help the people of Haiti.
UMCOR Sager Brown is coordinating a shipment of health kits to provide individuals with basic necessities. Instructions for assembling and shipping health kits are available at http://new.gbgm-umc.org/umcor/getconnected/supplies/health-kit/ .
|
|
|
|
|
Connecting Neighbors Program
Disaster Response Program
Flood Bucket Program
Scheduled Training
Contact Us
Plans and Forms
Frequently Asked Questions
Glossary
|
|
|
