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The UMCOR Hotline for November 8, 2011

by UMCOR | United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) - USA
Tuesday, 8 November 2011 20:59 GMT

In Today's Hotline: Read how UMCOR is responding to needs all over the world.

TURKEY: MARKING EID AFTER THE QUAKE
JFON: INTERNATIONAL MIGRANT DAY IS DECEMBER 18
HORN OF AFRICA: FAMINE RELIEF
US: HURRICANE IRENE RECOVERY IN THE NORTHEAST
WORLD AIDS DAY: WORKING TOWARDS AN AIDS-FREE WORLD
UMCOR: GIVE A GIFT THAT CHANGES THE WORLD

TURKEY: MARKING EID AFTER THE QUAKE

For the people of eastern Turkey, and especially the children, this year’s Eid-al-Adha feast, already under way, is being celebrated in tents and temporary shelters, after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake caused massive damage and casualties.

“The celebration of Eid-al-Adha is a dignity issue,” said Muzaffer Baca, vice president of International Blue Crescent (IBC), a Muslim humanitarian aid organization. IBC is partner of the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) in Turkey, Somalia, and elsewhere.

“Normally, the children go to houses in their neighborhood and pick up candies and gifts. But this Eid will be very sad for them,” Baca told UMCOR. He asked his staff in eastern Turkey to do what they could to provide some sweets and bring joy to the children in the quake zone.

Baca was hopeful that the schools, livelihoods, and homes would be rebuilt. IBC, with support from UMCOR, has provided emergency relief for the earthquake survivors and already is turning its attention to long-term recovery in eastern Turkey. Read more.

Your gift to International Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #982450, helps the people of eastern Turkey rebuild when you earmark your check “Turkey earthquake.”

JFON: INTERNATIONAL MIGRANT DAY IS DECEMBER 18

The United Nations has declared December 18 as a day to highlight the human rights and experiences of migrants.

The United Methodist Interagency Taskforce on Immigration and United Methodist Women are assembling a packet of resources for reflection, worship, and action to help you commemorate this day. For more information, please contact Cheryl Pierce.

Your gift to Justice for Our Neighbors, UMCOR Advance #901285, supports immigrants and asylum seekers, who must navigate a maze of rules and laws that governs their new life in the United States. Read more.

HORN OF AFRICA: FAMINE RELIEF

UMCOR continues to work with partners to provide help for those suffering from hunger and famine in the Horn of Africa.

Recent grants to UMCOR partners Church World Service and International Relief and Development will help prevent future crises. Projects in Kenya and Ethiopia are providing improved access to water for drinking and irrigation, and help for local farmers.

Learn more about the crisis in the Horn of Africa through this UMCOR video. Give to International Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #982450, to support these and other efforts to provide relief from hunger and famine. Please earmark your check “Horn of Africa.”

US: HURRICANE IRENE RECOVERY IN THE NORTHEAST

UMCOR continues to work with the New York and New England annual conferences to help communities affected by this September storm recover.

UMCOR grants will help provide for reconstruction, volunteer coordination, and training to help the conferences establish long-term recovery ministries. This includes training case managers to walk alongside families seeking their new normal, after their homes and workplaces were ravaged by Hurricane Irene.

Help UMCOR respond to disasters in the US, such as Hurricane Irene, by giving to US Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #901670.

WORLD AIDS DAY: WORKING TOWARDS AN AIDS-FREE WORLD

During a recent United Methodist Global AIDS Fund gathering, Beatrice Gbanga, coordinator of United Methodist health programs in West Africa, reported on outreach to people living with HIV/AIDS and their families in her native Sierra Leone.

Thanks to Global AIDS Fund assistance, she cited food support, health survival kits, disease prevention and management classes, AIDS-prevention clubs in schools, and pre- and post-delivery care for pregnant mothers and their babies, including measures to prevent, test, and treat HIV.

Gbanga showed the audience a slide of a young woman who, like many, lost both her parents to AIDS. The young woman finished high school and is enrolled in nursing school. “The message from my friends, those living with HIV and AIDS,” she shared, “is please continue to help us survive … [and] advocate so we can have an AIDS-free world.”

World AIDS Day is December 1. You can use this day to increase awareness about what can be done to fight HIV/AIDS in your community and the world. Use UMCOR’s bulletin insert and poster to help bring awareness for this day.

And give towards the work of the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund to support AIDS programs worldwide. You can direct your gift to United Methodist Global AIDS Fund, UMCOR Advance #982345.

UMCOR: GIVE A GIFT THAT CHANGES THE WORLD

Give change this Christmas! Use UMCOR’s gift catalog to give a gift that makes a difference all year long. This gift-giving guide offers examples of gifts that will fit any budget.

Browse the catalog today to see which projects might interest you or your loved ones. Learn more.

UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out more about UMCOR's ministries, please visit umcor.org. 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. You can also give online by clicking any of the "Give Now" links. 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.

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