North Carolina Lutheran
Disaster Response (NCLDR)
Download Early Response Team Training flyer.
- What is NCLDR?
- Who are the contacts?
- How to help? PRAY
- How to help? GIVE
- How to help? VOLUNTEER
- How to prepare?
- Caution
What is NCLDR? back to top
North Carolina Lutheran Disaster Response is a ministry of the North Carolina Synod in cooperation with Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas (LFS). The synod sends representatives to the Carolinas Coalition, which guides NC Synod congregations and agencies in the affected communities in their initial response efforts.
The Carolinas Coalition is made up of representatives of the synod staff, LFS, Thrivent, NC Lutheran Men in Mission, NC Women of the ELCA, Lenoir-Rhyne College, Southern Seminary, Agape+Kure Beach Ministries and Lutheridge+Lutherock Ministries.
Lutheran Disaster Response is a cooperative ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
Many people are unaware of the commitment that Lutheran Disaster Response and ELCA Domestic Disaster Response make to an area when they respond with assistance. For more information on the phases of a disaster and what exactly takes place, see "during a disaster."
Who are our contacts? back to top
To volunteer for Hurricane Katrina Response, or other disasters go here.
Charlene Deese is the contact person at the NC Synod Office for Hurricane Katrina response. If you have registered to volunteer on the LDR Web site and have not received a response, contact Charlene Deese. E-mail: cdeese@nclutheran.org or call 704-633-4861.
George Strunk is the North Carolina LDR Coordinator. An employee of Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas, he coordinates their response efforts in cooperation with Lutheran Disaster Response. E-mail George.Strunk@LFSCAROLINAS.ORG or call 1-800-542-8890
If you would like to organize a congregation response team, develop a church plan, or receive response team training, contact George Strunk.
How to help? PRAY back to top
We turn naturally to our heavenly Father in times of trouble. Those in need are leaning on your prayers and trusting in their assurance. Remember those involved in the disaster include the responders.
The following prayers are from Evangelical Lutheran Worship.
Those in trouble or bereavement
Almighty God, your love never
fails, and you can turn the shadow of death into daybreak. Help us to
receive your word with believing hearts, so that, confident in your promises,
we may have hope and be lifted out of sorrow into the joy and peace of
your presence; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Emergency workers
God of earth and air, water and fire, height and depth,
we pray for those who work in danger, who rush in to bring hope and help
and comfort when others flee to safety, whose mission is to seek and
save, serve and protect, and who presence embodies the protection of
the Good Shepherd. Give them caution and concern for one another, so
that in safety they may do what must be done, under your watchful eye.
Support them in their courage and dedication that they may continue to
save lives, ease pain, and mend the torn fabric of lives and social order;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
How to help? GIVE back to top
In times of disaster, other than prayer, the most needed essentials are funds to meet immediate needs. Disaster responders can them purchase specific items required whether insulin or baby formula, shovels or tarpaulins.
How to make a donation
To donate to ELCA Disaster Response, you may give through your own congregation
(marking your check for “Disaster Response”), through the ELCA
Disaster Response Web site, through Lutheran Family
Services in the Carolinas or directly to the North Carolina
Synod Disaster Response.
Thrivent Members: If you are a member of Thrivent Financial
for Lutherans, you may want to see if your donation is illegible for
matching grants before submitting.
If donating through the NC Synod, send your check to:
North Carolina Disaster Response
1988 Lutheran Synod Drive
Salisbury, NC 28144
Make checks to: N.C. Synod, ELCA - Note on check for "N.C. Disaster Response"
For international disaster you may donate directly
to the International
ELCA Disaster Response from
the ELCA web site.
Make your donations to ELCA Domestic Disaster Response by
one of the following means:
Mail a check to:
ELCA Domestic
Disaster Response
PO Box 71764
Chicago,
Illinois 60694-1764
By credit card:
Credit Card gift line: 1-800-638-3522
Credit Card gift via web: www.elca.org/disaster
Make donations through Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas
Send a check to:
Lutheran Family
Services in the Carolinas
PO Box 12287
Raleigh,
NC 27605
Credit Card donations at: www.lfscarolinas.org
DONATING ITEMS
REMINDER
Do NOT solicit or send merchandise to a disaster area
without FIRST speaking to a disaster professional in
the area.
Adequate storage and distribution arrangements may not be ready. The BEST way
to help is to send monetary donations. Disaster personnel can purchase
needed supplies in the local area — they can purchase just what
is needed and also benefit a hard-hit area economy.
If specific supplies are requested, the information will be sent out
through the ELCA, synod or the American Red Cross.
How to help? VOLUNTEER back to top
If you would like to volunteer for a specific disaster, get in touch with the coordinators listed above or check the ELCA Disaster Response Web site.
Lutheran Disaster Response has granted Lutheran Family Services $40,000
to prepare congregations in North and South Carolina for disasters. Early
Response Teams will be trained, Congregational Disaster Response Plans
can be reviewed or developed and volunteer work teams can be encouraged
and developed. The time to act is before the storm.
Your church can benefit by calling George Strunk at 1-800-542-8890 to
schedule a visit, a class, or request help with writing a church plan
for response.
CAUTION:
Immediately following a disaster when it is still headline news, there
is a compassionate desire to help and immediately head to the disaster
area. NCLDR understands that Christian desire, but asks that you first
make sure the area is ready for a response by contacting emergency services
in the area. Often volunteers who arrive too early can add to the confusion
and logistical problems. It means more people to be housed, fed and cared
for and can cause a strain on resources. There can also be a problem
of safety with downed power lines, sewage, snakes and/or chemicals in
flood waters, or hazardous materials or chemicals in the air, and various
other hazards particular to the disaster.
Our synod contacts work with the disaster response agencies and can let
you know when it is safe to respond. Only persons certified as First
Responders are usually allowed by law enforcement into the effected area.
If you are interested in Early Response training, contact George Strunk.
Youth are usually not allowed on a disaster site without a parent present
or a written release (see form).
Remember that Lutheran Disaster Response is known for being there for
the long-haul, after the media and government attention has gone. There
are many safe, meaningful and vital services provided for disaster victims
for months and even years after a disaster is in the headlines.
Download Volunteer Forms for Your Congregation: These
forms will be useful should you wish to volunteer time to help disaster
victims.
Disaster
Response Availability Form
Volunteer Guidelines
Volunteer Skills
Minor Release Form
How to Prepare ? back to top
-
Prepare to be a volunteer
-
Prepare your congregation to be an approved disaster response center
-
Prepare your congregation, family or group to be ready in case of an emergency
Prepare to be a volunteer
A trained volunteer can be a gift from heaven after
a disaster - an untrained one can be a disaster. You
may think that if you are skilled with a chainsaw, carpentry or plumbing,
you would not need training. But there are many aspects of dealing with
a disaster, including FEMA regulations, handling people under extreme
emotional distress, and safety factors that you need to know.
All types of volunteers are needed, not just those with carpentry skills.
People with gifts as counselors, cooks, pastors, childcare workers, warehouse
management, truckers, and so much more play important roles in recovery.
Entertaining children in an emergency shelter can be a precious gift
to parents who are struggling with overwhelming loss and mind-numbing
paperwork.
Read the CAUTION section to learn
how you can help and then contact our coordinators.
Prepare your congregation
to be an approved disaster response center
Lutheran congregations have often served as havens during disasters,
serving as feeding or distribution centers, places to get help filling
out government forms, or shelters for victims or volunteers. If you would
like help assessing your congregation’s preparedness or determining
how it can help in time of need, contact Charlene
Deese at the NC Synod office, or George
Strunk, our NCLDR coordinator.
You should also check out ReadyNC.org and
the Spanish version: ListoNC.org for
preparedness information for families, churches and communities.
Prepare your congregation, family
or group to be ready in case of an emergency
Check out these links for detailed information on being prepared for
a variety of natural, manmade and health-related disaster.
You should also check out ReadyNC.org and the Spanish version: ListoNC.org for preparedness information for families, churches and communities.
