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NEWS: UMCOR RESPONDS TO FIRES AND FLOODS
UMCOR is providing the Rocky Mountain Annual Conference with emergency assistance to respond to the Black Forest Fire which charred hundreds of homes and acreage. Rocky Mountain will use funding to work with families affected by the fires near Colorado Springs.
The Black Forest Fire, just recently contained, blazed through 16,000 acres, destroyed nearly 500 homes and claimed two lives, according to news reports. UMCOR’s US Disaster Response Executive, Gregg Forrester is in communication with Gary Haddock, disaster relief coordinator for the Rocky Mountain Conference, to assess future needs and support.
UMCOR is also responding to recent flooding in Texas with two emergency grants to the Southwest Texas Annual Conference. The grants will aid affected communities in the San Antonio area and residents affected by flooding in Eagle Pass.
In San Antonio, floodwaters deluged numerous roads, killed two women, and forced more than 235 rescues by emergency workers. Nearly 10 inches of rainfall was reported in a matter of hours by the city airport.
Piedras Negras, Mexico, a border town located three hours west of San Antonio, also was affected by flooding. UMCOR is in talks with Bishop Raul García, Eastern Conference of the Methodist Church of Mexico, to secure assistance there.
Your gifts to US Disaster Response, Advance #901670 can aid fire and flood survivors in their recovery, and help UMCOR to respond to needs as they occur.
PRAYER: PASSING OF MADAM ANNE RUTH DEPESTRE, HAITI
UMCOR extends its deepest condolences to families and loved ones of Madame Anne Ruth Depestre, who passed away on Friday, June 21. Madame Depestre was the manager of the Methodist Guesthouse in Petionville, Haiti, and wife of Rev. Marco Depestre of the Methodist Church in Haiti (Eglise Méthodiste d'Haïti). The Rev. Jim Gulley, UMCOR consultant, is attending Madame Depestre’s memorial service in Haiti this week on behalf of UMCOR and Global Ministries.
As manager of the Methodist guesthouse, Madame Depestre was central in facilitating arriving volunteer groups or visiting staff who were coordinating or implementing recovery efforts in Haiti after the January 2010 earthquake. You are welcome to sign the United Methodist Volunteers in Mission online guest book to share your condolences.
UMCOR OPENINGS: PROGRAM MANAGER, NY
UMCOR is seeking a program manager to be based in its New York City headquarters. This professional would guide and oversee UMCOR field offices in their program development, monitoring and reporting of activities, strategic development, and exit/transition planning.
Please visit UMCOR’s Careers page on our website for more details.
RESOURCE: SHARE UMCOR FACEBOOK MEMES
If you’ve been following us on Facebook, then you’ve been spotting our memes. Internet memes may take the form of an image, video, word, or phrase, and are used to spread messages from person to person via social media networks.
Share this UMCOR meme with your friends on Facebook or Twitter and help spread the word of UMCOR’s relief work around the globe.
MEDIA: SAFE WATER IN SOUTH SUDAN
In this new video, Cephas Munjeri, head of mission for UMCOR South Sudan, shares about the advantages of establishing safe water points in South Sudan and its positive impacts on reducing the occurrence of disease outbreaks and on child mortality. Learn also how access to safe water also helps improve livelihoods in a community.
