Working with LCMS Florida-Georgia District Disaster Response Coordinators to Help Impacted Churches, Individuals and Families in Hardest-Hit Areas with Recovery Efforts Hurricane Ian, one of the most powerful storms ever to strike the US mainland, battered southwest Florida with high winds, rain, and storm surges as it moved inland. The death toll reported is now more than 100 as search and rescue teams continue to go door to door throughout impacted communities. As the storm swept ashore in southwest Florida, it raged across the state with catastrophic 150 mph winds and a deadly storm surge of up to 18 feet. Estimated to be about 140 miles wide, it was downgraded from a high category 4 hurricane to a tropical storm as it moved slowly northeast, causing vast destruction and major flooding. Lutheran Church Charities Disaster Response Director Kathy O'Day and Ed Boerman, Northern Illinois District Disaster Response Coordinators, are working with the LCMS Disaster Response and District Disaster Response Coordinator Jay Wendland from the Florida-Georgia District. On Sunday, October 9, eighteen LCC Lutheran Early Response Team (L.E.R.T.) volunteers arrived in Florida with chainsaws, heavy equipment, and servant-hearts to begin the massive recovery effort in our designated communities of Venice, Port Charlotte, and Englewood until the end of October. Additional L.E.R.T. volunteers will arrive throughout the deployment. As of Monday, five churches, four pastors, and thirty-one congregation members from five different churches need immediate property assistance. Assessments began upon arrival, and some of the homeowner damage is so bad that homes are uninhabitable. Additional assessments will continue throughout the three-week deployment. Lakeside Lutheran Joyfully Serves Community through L.E.R.T. On Monday, LCC L.E.R.T. volunteers completed all of the property clean-up at the host church, Lakeside Lutheran, in Venice, Florida. Pastor David Dahlke and congregation members are very welcoming and supportive of our team members. They are amazed at all of the work done to clean up their property so quickly. Lakeside’s mission is “to joyfully serve,” and they have been joyfully serving our L.E.R.T. volunteers so that we can represent them as we serve in their communities. Restoring Hope at Redeemer Lutheran Church
LCC L.E.R.T. volunteers will provide chainsaw, heavy equipment, boom lift assistance, and some mucking and gutting of a flooded church sanctuary. Our teams will also provide spiritual and emotional care as many people took shelter in their homes and endured horrific conditions while the hurricane passed through their cities. Residents are overwhelmed with the devastation and need the reassurance and hope found in Jesus Christ. LCC never goes where we are not invited. We NEVER charge those we serve! If you are so moved, please donate to the LCC Disaster Response Fund or LCC Equipment Maintenance & Fuel Expense Fund so that we may continue to show the Mercy, Compassion, Presence and Proclamation of Jesus Christ to those suffering and in need. Please pray for the residents in the impacted communities and all of the LCC Disaster Response volunteers and staff during our deployment to the hardest-hit areas of Florida to help during the long recovery process.
The families and staff at Saint Michael Lutheran Church and School in Fort Meyers, Florida, were impacted by the destruction caused by Hurricane Ian. More than 40 families from their congregation lost their homes. Some of the teachers' homes were flooded or have cars that were no longer drivable. It has been a challenging time for all. Through all of these challenges, their Pastor, Principal, Director of Christian education, teachers, parents, and congregation have worked together to help one another. Lori Schwan, Director of Christian Education from Saint Michael, invited the LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs to be at the school on Tuesday as the teachers, parents, and children returned for the first time since Hurricane Ian. It was a soft opening, allowing teachers and parents to meet with counselors from Lutheran Counseling Service in the morning and then an open house for the students in the afternoon. LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs Jemimah (St. Paul - Boca Raton, Florida), Moriah (St. Luke - Oviedo, Florida), and Peace (Trinity - Orlando, Florida) traveled to be present with the staff, parents, and teachers to bring comfort, love and a gentle and kind distraction from all the stress and loss the community is facing. The LCC K-9 Ministry teams were blessed to see the teachers' and parents' faces relax and the lines of stress ease as they petted and interacted with the dogs. Seeing the children smile and hug the Comfort Dogs was a gift. Even in our darkest times, God's light shines and directs our paths. People are working together, helping each other, and watching over each other during these times of tragedy to help lighten the load. "For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness." Psalm 18:28 LCC never goes where we are not invited. We NEVER charge those we serve! If you are so moved, please donate to the LCC K-9 Comfort Dog Travel Fund so that we may continue to show the Mercy, Compassion, Presence and Proclamation of Jesus Christ to those suffering and in need.
Your Donations Help Purchase a House to Establish Maternity Home for Single Pregnant Women in Crisis10/11/2022
LCC received an update from Sheryl DeWitt, Director of Redeeming Life Outreach Ministries (RLOM), on the fundraising progress to open a Christ-Centered Maternity Home for single pregnant women in crisis. October greetings! I write today with exciting news—The Phase Two funding goal for the expansion of Redeeming Life into the Northern Illinois District has been met. Phase One and Phase Two together aimed to raise $350,000 total, and with your help, we did it! Praise God for this early success. Thank you for advocating for this ministry and for those moms and babies we will soon serve. With God’s help, Redeeming Life literally saves lives by providing for physical needs, ministering to spiritual and emotional needs, and teaching life skills that allow clients to graduate from our maternity home ready to live well independently. Your work in your congregation and neighborhood expands our base of support to provide for the ongoing needs of the ministry. While we joyfully celebrate this milestone, we know this is where the real work begins as we move from an exciting plan for ministry in Illinois into the reality of hands-on ministry with God’s children. We thank you for your involvement to this point and ask for your continued partnership in prayer and practice! Please continue to be a voice for Redeeming Life, sharing this exciting news and the challenges that lie ahead. We are confident to ask for God’s continued blessings on this life-giving ministry and on you as you invest yourself in the mission. We praise God for this goal met and for your partnership in this vital work. Join us at Redeeming Life Outreach Ministries in a prayer of thanksgiving, as through the generosity of many in northern Illinois and beyond, we recently met our Phase Two funding goal in expanding our Maternity Home Ministry in East Dundee, Illinois! Faithful support from congregations and individuals now totals $350,000, allowing us to close on the sale of the home, complete the renovations needed, and hire the staff who will ensure our clients are cared for with the love and mercy of Jesus. Stay up to date on our progress by visiting rlom.org and pray for God’s continued blessings through His people as we seek to serve mothers and babies. In Christ, Sheryl DeWitt Executive Director Please prayerfully consider continuing to donate to help Redeeming Life Outreach Ministries welcome single pregnant women in crisis in the new Maternity Home.
LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs Levi (Immanuel - East Dundee, Illinois), Myra (St. Andrews - Park Ridge, Illinois), and Samson (Zion Lutheran - Marengo, Illinois) and and their handlers were invited to be at the visitation for Bryan Michael Stephan, 34, of Crystal Lake, Illinois. Bryan leaves behind his wife and their three young sons ages 11, 7, and 2. Bryan loved cycling, music, fishing, camping and simply all things outdoors. The K-9s offered love, comfort and gentleness as many came to say good-bye to Bryan. The LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs are good listeners, allowing people to relax and share their feelings. Levi, Myra, and Samson and their handlers made sure they shared time and love with Bryan’s young boys whose hearts are broken. We pray for Bryan’s young family and all those who loved him for God’s peace, comfort, and healing. "'He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.' The Good News: No matter the source of your heartbreak, God can repair your wounds." Psalm 147:3 On October 6-8, LCC Interim President/CEO Lynda Streich and LCC staff member Tim Laabs represented LCC at the Lutheran Educators Association (LEA) Convocation in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They shared information about LCC ministries and answered questions from the attendees. More than 3,000 educators and workers in Lutheran Ministries gathered this year to connect with others and advance their professional development. Keynote speaker Scott Hamilton, Olympic gold medalist, cancer survivor, television broadcaster, Christian husband, and father of four children in faith-based schools, shared how God has used him and others in his life. Also present were LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs Charity (Brookfield - Brookfield, Wisconsin), Caleb (Immanuel - Valparaiso, Indiana), Dora (Lutheran High School Association of Greater Milwaukee - Milwaukee, Wisconsin), Emma (LCC Staff), Mary (St. Paul's - Janesville, Wisconsin), Rhoda (Prince of Peace - Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin), and LCC Kare 9 Military Ministry Dog Nigel (LCC Staff). The attendees stopped by the LCC's booth to pet and snuggle with the K-9s. Seeing so many affiliates and new friends from around the country was very special.
|
Categories
All
Archives
April 2024
|