By Ilexene Alphonse January 12 is a date forever engraved in my heart for two reasons: first, January 12, 2007, I married the love of my life, Michaela Alphonse; second, January 12, 2010, the worst natural disaster in my time, a massive earthquake, destroyed my native country of Haiti and my people. It was the
Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured” (Hebrews 13:3). Lawan Andimi was executed by Boko Haram yesterday, Jan. 20. He was an ordained minister in Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in
The Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) and the Global Food Initiative Fund (GFI) have announced first grants for the year 2020. Brethren Disaster Ministries has directed EDF grants to a rebuilding project in Florida following Hurricane Irma; new work of the Disaster Recovery Support Initiative (DRSI) under the direction of Church World Service (CWS); and flood
By Jenn Dorsch Messler The Church of the Brethren Puerto Rico District continues to ask for prayer for those affected by earthquake aftershocks and tremors continuing daily. More than 1,200 small earthquakes have occurred in Puerto Rico since Dec. 28, 2019. Several quakes over magnitude 5.0 have caused great damage, especially in the south, with
A pilot program to help communities launch long-term recovery following disasters is growing ecumenically. Over the past two years the disaster ministries of the Church of the Brethren, the United Church of Christ (UCC), and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) have joined forces to pioneer the Disaster Recovery Support Initiative (DRSI) in nine states
Roxane Hill is concluding her position as coordinator of the Nigeria Crisis Response, as of the end of this year. Her husband, Carl Hill, pastor of Potsdam (Ohio) Church of the Brethren, also previously worked with her on the response. The Nigeria Crisis Response is not ending but programming is being reduced, although funding for
Brethren Disaster Ministries has announced several changes in its rebuilding project sites as 2019 closes out and the new year begins. In related news, volunteers are urgently needed at two rebuilding locations in the Carolinas and Puerto Rico: In the Carolinas, volunteers are needed for the week of Dec. 15-21 to complete the rebuilding schedule
By Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, with contributions from Peggy Reiff Miller The 75th anniversary of Heifer International was celebrated Oct. 5, in Castañer, P.R., hosted by Puerto Rico District of the Church of the Brethren, the Castañer congregation, and Castañer Hospital. (For photos of the celebration and other views of Puerto Rico go to www.bluemelon.com/churchofthebrethren/puertoricohostsheifers75thanniversary .) Puerto Rico was
Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) deployed a team to Beaumont, Texas, in response to the flooding from Tropical Depression Imelda. The team arrived Sunday, Sept. 22, and began serving children in Beaumont and Silsbee, Texas, the following day. CDS is a program within Brethren Disaster Ministries. Since 1980, its trained and certified volunteers have been meeting
By Zakariya Musa The Disaster Relief Ministry of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) has assisted about 1,200 internally displaced people (IDPs) from three camps in Maiduguri during a two-day intervention on Sept. 18-19. Maiduguri is the largest city in the far northeast of Nigeria, and the location of
