Updates

Bridges newsletter (on small screens)

  • CDS helps care for children and families among asylum seekers in Chicago area

    Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) deployed a team of three volunteers to Oak Park, Ill., to aid children and families among asylum seekers who have been sent to Chicago from the southern border of Texas. The team served from Monday, Nov. 6, to Thursday, Nov. 9, caring for 51 children.

  • Children’s Disaster Services deploys to Lewiston, Maine

    On Oct. 28, Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) deployed a team of five Critical Response Childcare volunteers to Lewiston, Maine, in partnership with the Red Cross. This deployment was made in response to the mass shootings at two locations in Lewiston in which 18 people were killed and 13 others were injured.

  • EDF grants offer aid and relief in Haiti, the United States, Ukraine and Poland, the DRC, and Rwanda

    Brethren Disaster Ministries has directed grants from the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) to respond to multiple crises in Haiti, support continued Brethren Disaster Ministries work following 2022’s summer flooding in the central United States, aid displaced Ukrainians with disabilities, provide school kits for displaced children in the Democratic Republic of Congo, provide flood relief in Rwanda, and support a summer program for migrant children in Washington, D.C.

  • More abductees gain their freedom in northeast Nigeria

    Talatu Ali has been reunited with her family, along with three of the four children she gave birth to during her 10 years of captivity. She was rescued by the Nigerian military, from the Gavva area of Gwoza Local Government, Borno State, during an operation in which 21 people were rescued including women and children who were mostly trapped in the area by Boko Haram.

  • Children’s Disaster Services deploys second team to Hawaii after wildfires

    Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) has deployed another team to Hawaii in partnership with the Red Cross. The volunteers traveled to Maui on Sept. 4-5.

  • Children’s Disaster Services deploys volunteers to Hawaii after wildfires

    The Church of the Brethren’s Children’s Disaster services (CDS) has deployed volunteers to Hawaii in partnership with the Red Cross. The volunteers traveled on Aug. 14-15. They have set up a Children’s Disaster Services Center in a Family Assistance Center in Lahaina, on the island of Maui. The volunteers are scheduled to serve through Sept. 4.

  • Conference office seeks more volunteers to staff silent auction

    The Annual Conference office is calling for more volunteers to staff the silent auction taking place during the event in Cincinnati, Ohio, next week. The silent auction is sponsored by the Program and Arrangements Committee for the Conference.

  • Children’s Disaster Services deploys team to Guam after Typhoon Mawar

    Children’s Disaster services (CDS) has deployed a team of six volunteers to Guam in partnership with the Red Cross. The first volunteer traveled on June 12, and the full team will be in place by June 16.

  • EYN holds its General Church Council 2023

    Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) has successfully conducted her annual General Church Council or Majalisa on May 16-19 at its Headquarters located at Kwarhi, Hong Local Government Area, Adamawa State. In attendance were over 1,750, all pastors (serving and retired), delegates from Local Church Councils, representatives of programs and institutions, and observers.

  • Brethren Disaster Ministries holds leadership seminar

    The Brethren Disaster Ministries leadership seminar held May 14-17 at Camp Blue Diamond in Petersburg, Pa., brought together staff, district disaster coordinators (DDCs), and disaster project leaders (DPLs) to review and renew the rebuilding program.

Bridges newsletters

Bridges – Fall 2023 (2 MB)
CDS deployments, BVS volunteers, Hurricane Ida response, global updates, and more

Bridges – Summer 2023 (943 KB)
Rebuilding and CDS updates, Kentucky project, assistance in the DR Congo and Rwanda, and more

Bridges – Winter 2023 (2 MB)
A New Home for Survivors and BDM Volunteers, Trauma and Children: Why CDS is Important to Children After Disasters, and more

Bridges – Fall 2022 (2 MB)
2022 Hurricanes Response, BVS Volunteer Joins BDM Rebuilding Team, North Fort Myers Church of the Brethren: Responding to God’s Call, and more

Bridges – Summer 2022 (2 MB)
Ukraine, Children’s Disaster Service and Rebuilding updates, disaster response auctions, and more

Bridges – Winter 2022 (1 MB)
Hurricane Florence long-term recovery, winter tornado response, volcano response in DR Congo, Homes for Haiti, Nigeria Crisis Response update, CDS news, and more

Bridges – Fall 2021 (1 MB)
CDS updates, Nigeria Crisis Response, volcano relief in DRC, Afghan refugees, Haiti earthquake response, Rebuild updates, and more

Bridges – Summer 2021 (1 MB)
Hurricanes, tornadoes, migrating children, volcanoes, and northeast Nigeria

Bridges – Winter 2021 (1.8 MB)
2020 reports (BDM, CDS, Nigeria Crisis), hurricanes in Central America, Puerto Rico celebration, house blessings, and more.

Bridges – Fall 2020 (293 KB)
Rise up Brethren! COVID-19 pandemic grants, DR Congo flood relief, Lebanon explosion, Iowa derecho response, and more.

Bridges – Summer 2020 (904 KB)
Choosing to serve in these challenging times: COVID-19 grants, CDS updates, Rebuild news and plans, Puerto Rico, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo

Bridges – Winter 2020 (1.50 MB)
EDF grant supports district response to Puerto Rico earthquakes, Home sweet home, Angels serving after forgotten storms, Wrapping up in Nichols, S.C., Rebuilding updates, Hurricane Dorian response in the Bahamas

Bridges – Fall 2019 (1.34 MB)
Puerto Rico partnership, CDS updates, American Red Cross honors CDS volunteers, Rebuilding news, border crisis, Nigeria progress, Hurricane Dorian – Bahamas

Bridges – Summer 2019 (699 KB)
Rebuilding updates, Puerto Rico, VOAD conference, South Sudan relief, cyclones hit southern Africa, CDS updates

Bridges – Winter 2019 (435 KB)
Art, CDS news, Puerto Rico recovery, USVI report, upcoming disaster auctions, 2018 report, Nigeria update, Honduras flood response, and more

Bridges – Fall 2018 (1.04 MB)
Hurricane response, Rebuild update, CDS deployments, Nigeria Crisis, lessons during the hurricane

Bridges Summer 2018 (837 KB)
Puerto Rico: The race to rebuild; DRSI in the USVI; Kathy Fry-Miller retirement announcement; BDM at National VOAD 2018, and more.

Bridges – Winter 2018 (414 KB)
Children’s Disaster Services report, Hurricane Maria response, Rebuild program update, disaster response in Missouri, Nigeria, and more.

For older back issues of Bridges, contact the BDM office.