Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) has issued a winter-spring workshop schedule for 2016. The CDS training obtained at these workshops is a unique kind of disaster preparedness training. The trainings will include logistics of disaster response work, all through the lens of compassionate care for children and their families, as well the caregivers themselves.
Brethren Disaster Ministries
EDF Grants Support Rebuilding Project in Colorado, PAG in Honduras
The Brethren Disaster Ministries staff have directed two recent grants from the Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) to support continued rebuilding work at a project site in Colorado, and a response by PAG to flooding in Honduras.
Brethren Staff Visit Nigeria, Assess Crisis Response with EYN and Mission Partners
Global Mission and Service staff have made a trip to Nigeria to meet with Nigerian Brethren leadership and mission partners, and to assess the Nigeria Crisis Response. They attended meetings and visited various sites with Nigerian Brethren leaders.
Lancaster County Church Stands with Nigerian Terror Victim
Upon reading about a 14 year-old Nigerian girl and member of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN) who lost her leg after being kidnapped by the Boko Haram, Hempfield Church of the Brethren decided to act.
EDF Grants Go to Families in Myanmar and Haitians in the DR, CDS Receives UMCOR Grant
The staff of Brethren Disaster Ministries have directed grants from the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) to aid families in Myanmar (Burma) who were affected by Cyclone Komen, and to help people of Haitian descent who are living in the Dominican Republic.
Brethren Staff Visit Nigeria, Assess Crisis Response with EYN and Mission Partners
Church of the Brethren staff have been visiting in Nigeria to meet with Nigerian Brethren leadership and mission partners, and to assess the Nigeria Crisis Response. Global Mission and Service executive director Jay Wittmeyer and associate executive Roy Winter, who heads up Brethren Disaster Ministries, attended meetings and traveled with Nigerian Brethren leaders to visit, among other sites, the EYN headquarters near Mubi which were evacuated last October when the Boko Haram Islamist insurgents took over the area.
EYN Offers Seminar on Trauma Healing for Displaced Pastors
A seminar on trauma healing for displaced pastors of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria), was offered at Yola from Sept. 7-12. This seminar was organized by the office of the Ministers Council in conjunction with the EYN Disaster Relief Management financed by the Church of the Brethren. It was offered for 100 displaced pastors.
Frederick Church Hosts Children’s Disaster Services Volunteer Workshop
Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) is offering a workshop to train volunteers on Friday, Oct. 30, at 5 p.m., to Saturday, Oct. 31, at 7:30 p.m., at Frederick Church of the Brethren, 201 Fairview Avenue, Frederick, Md.
Children’s Disaster Services Cares for Families Affected by California Fire
“Our California team has cared for over 218 children in Calistoga, Calif., in response to the wildfires,” reports Children’s Disaster Services associate director Kathy Fry-Miller. “They are serving at a Local Assistance Center for families.”
The Stones Cry Out: Displaced People Face Difficult Situation in Nigeria, Boko Haram Attacks Continue
As the crowd cheered Jesus on Palm Sunday, the Pharisees told him to quiet the crowd. Jesus responded, “If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” Later Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem and its future destruction, saying, “They will not leave one stone on another.” These are two opposing references to stones in Luke 19; one of celebration and acknowledgement of Christ, the second of destruction for those who did not recognize him.