Thank you for joining Lutheran Church Charities in supporting our mission to aid vulnerable people in Haiti during these challenging times. LCC has partnered with Grace Lutheran Church in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and its Pastor, Cris Escher, to support the work of Habitat for Children Ministries. Rev. Escher currently serves as the Vice President of Habitat for Children Ministries, and the congregation at Grace Lutheran strongly supports this ministry’s efforts in Haiti.

On June 24, Habitat for Children Ministries will open a much-anticipated pediatric medical clinic in Haiti in the La Jeune area to serve pregnant women and children.
 
We invite you to read the letter from Meschac St Amour, President and Founder of Habitat for Children Ministries, for more details on how you can contribute to this important cause.
 
Let's come together to make a difference in the lives of those in need in Haiti.
 
CLICK HERE to read the letter from President St Amour.

Please join us in our efforts to provide essential funding for the clinic dedicated to providing medical care and essential healthcare services to pregnant mothers and their children.

The current situation of violence and unrest in Haiti has resulted in a critical need for medical care, and together, we can make a difference and bring hope and material support to those in need.

Every dollar counts and can make a huge difference in the lives of those impacted by this crisis. Thank you for your generosity and compassion.

The situation in Haiti is critical, with millions of people starving and in desperate need of assistance. Thank you for joining LCC in supporting our mission to aid the vulnerable in Haiti during these challenging times. Your contribution, no matter how big or small, can make a difference and help alleviate the suffering of those affected. Together, we can make a meaningful impact and help save lives in Haiti.

Because of your unwavering support, LCC has been able to make substantial donations for food and medicine to Mission Haiti and Habitat For Children Ministries. We received the following updates from Lophane Laurent, Mission Haiti and Meschac St Amour, President, Habitat For Children Ministries:

Speaking with a friend from Port-au-Prince last week, he said to me humanitarian colleagues emphasized that these departments do not have sufficient infrastructure, and host communities do not have sufficient resources to cope with the large number of people fleeing Port-au-Prince. Also, speaking with a police friend over the weekend in Port-au-Prince, he said that of the 53,125 people who fled Port-au-Prince from March 8th-27th, nearly 80% already had been forced to abandon their homes and were living with relatives or in crowded and unsanitary makeshift shelters across the capital. The countryside is getting filled quickly, and now we are dealing with a lack of everything.

More than 85% of Haitians leaving the capital have been crowding into buses, risking travel through gang-controlled territory where gang rapes have been reported arm gunmen have been known to open fire on public transport. The transitional council, which will be responsible for choosing a new Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, has yet to be formally established.
 
"So, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."  (2 Corinthians 4:18)

Meschac St Amour
President
Habitat For Children Ministries, Inc.                                            

We received the following update from Meschac St Amour, President, Habitat For Children Ministries:

Please join us in our efforts to help save lives in Haiti. Together, we can make a difference and bring hope and material support to those in need. Thank you for your generosity and compassion.

Thank you for joining LCC in supporting our mission to aid the vulnerable in Haiti during these challenging times.

Thanks to your unwavering support, LCC has been able to make substantial donations for food and medicine to Mission Haiti. LCC is also working for the first time with Habitat for Children Ministries in collaboration with Rev. Cris Escher of Grace Lutheran Church (LCMS) in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Rev. Escher currently serves as the Vice President of Habitat for Children Ministries, and the congregation at Grace Lutheran strongly supports this ministry’s efforts in Haiti.

Please join us in our efforts to help save lives in Haiti. The violence and unrest in Haiti have left many innocent people injured, homeless, and in dire need of medical care, food, and shelter. We are working closely with our partners to safely provide essential assistance, including meals and medical supplies, to families amidst the challenges of volatility and violence.

Together, we can make a difference and bring hope and material support to those in need. Every dollar counts and can make a huge difference in the lives of those impacted by this crisis. Thank you for your generosity and compassion.

Anna Piro shared the team's sentiment, "We all worked well together, falling into the tasks at hand. As you can imagine, there has been much joy and laughter throughout our trip with each other and those we worked with. Belize was good to us, and we have loved the people we met at Camp Concordia and Good Shepherd."
 
The Northern Illinois District and Lutheran Church Charities thanks each of these volunteers for their willing service in Belize. The Lutheran Mission Belize posted the following thanks on their Facebook page: "We are so grateful for the hard work of these Lutheran Early Response Team (LERT) volunteers this past week! They took down damaged and diseased trees in several locations throughout Belize, including at Camp Concordia. They have been a blessing!"

The following Northern Illinois District, Lutheran Church Charities LERT team members spent the last week in Belize:

Larry Zagorski, Max Metz - Lord of Life, Elburn
Marty Johnson and Anna Piro - St. John, Wheaton
Pete and Christel Springmire - Immanuel, DeKalb

All of the families served by the team expressed their deep appreciation that their properties are now safe for their children to play and that they would not have to worry about falling trees causing major damage in the next storm. The team feels blessed to be serving their brothers and sisters in Christ.
Please continue to pray for the team, Pastor Herb and Markie Burch, Pastor Benjamin and Karina Flores, and GEO Missionaries Jordan & Justin Langston, and Gary & Sue Kessler, as they each serve the people of Belize in the Name of the Lord.

Lutheran Church Charities has been invited by Gary Kessler, Globally Engaged in Outreach (GEO) Missionary to Belize, and Rev. Dr. Allan Buss, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) Northern Illinois District President, to remove multiple dead and storm-damaged trees from properties in Belize: Concordia Mission House grounds in Belmopan, a local partner church in Orange Walk and at the Belize Zoo in La Democracia.
 
The storm occurred many months ago, but none of the organizations could afford to hire crews to do the cleanup. They are all very happy to finally have their properties made safe for visitors.
 
The following Northern Illinois District Lutheran Church Charities Lutheran Early Response Team (LERT) members volunteered for this mission trip to Belize and will be serving January 24 – 30:
 
•   Larry Zagorski, Max Metz - Lord of Life, LaFox
•   Marty Johnson and Anna Piro - St. John, Wheaton
•   Pete and Christel Springmire - Immanuel, DeKalb
 
The teams will be taking their own chainsaws, ropes, rigging, and personal protection equipment. Once in Belize, they will also be renting a tractor with a grapple and lift to use for the week.
 
The Northern Illinois District Missions and Lutheran Church Charities, through donations, have committed to fund this team’s trip expenses, which are estimated to be approximately $8,000. Gary Kessler and Rev. Dr. Allan Buss appreciate LCC’s disaster response team's commitment to serve in Belize and the opportunity to help support this endeavor.
 
Please prayerfully consider donating to help fund LERT mission trip to Belize to serve those in need.

Your generous donations were sent to Haiti to provide food for school children and their families in Haiti's tent city during Christmas break. LCC received the following update and picture from Lophane Laurent in Haiti

Through your generous donations, Lutheran Church Charities continues to provide scholarships for children in the tent city in Haiti. With the current political crisis raising the cost of food dramatically, Lutheran Church Charities is asking for your generous donations this Christmas to provide these children with basic food supplies.
 
The holiday season is a time of joy and celebration for many, but for children in Haiti, it can be a time of hunger and uncertainty. With your help, we can make a difference by providing food for these children during the Christmas break.

For just $65.00, you can provide a child and their family with a food package that will feed them during the Christmas break and prevent them from going hungry.
 
Your donation will go directly towards purchasing nutritious meals and ensuring these children have the sustenance they need to thrive. Together, we can bring some much-needed comfort and hope to these vulnerable children. Your donation will show the love and compassion of Jesus to these children in need.
 
Help make a difference this Christmas for the children in Haiti with Lutheran Church Charities.

Pastors of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Ukraine (SELCU) continue weekly to provide humanitarian relief to various areas in Ukraine. Your ongoing donations make this ministry possible. Pastor Sergey Bevz of Dnipro reports:

Thank you to everyone who continues to support us, even after a year and a half of war! God cares for people and does this often through other people. We continue to help the people in our locality.

Photos: Lutheran Church "Living Water" Dnipro Metro Station