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“Come, Let us Rebuild” – Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma

Covenant World Relief (CWR) dollars were still at work following the hurricanes of 2004 in the Caribbean and CWR had just agreed to support 75 home construction projects in Cuba following hurricane Dennis, when Katrina came ashore in the Gulf. This hurricane was soon followed by Rita, Stan, and Wilma – a tragic disaster of immense proportions.

The 2006 hurricane season was simply devastating to many communities and thousands of lives in the southern states of the Gulf Coast. The region of devastation is miles wide and miles deep.

Since Hurricane Katrina hit, hundreds of Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) members have traveled to the region to volunteer. Numerous congregations have sent teams to work with Samaritan’s Purse; Mennonite Central Committee; a ministry of several ECC congregations in Pascagoula (largely facilitated by Hillcrest ECC (KS); a ministry of Crossroads ECC (CO) in Bay Saint Louis; New Jerusalem Praise and Worship Center in Slidell, MS; Hands of Hope in Plaquemines Parish, LA; and numerous other sites of family and congregation connection. Many congregations assisted evacuees and sent resources of tools furniture, etc. to the suffering region. One congregation sent a team to rebuild a shrimp boat (your CWR donations assisted in the engine rebuild). This indeed is a response of the ECC – remembering that the Church is not the institution of its building – it is people!

The CWR Katrina and hurricane fund has cared for evacuees, cleaned and rebuilt homes, and granted $1,000’s of building supplies. More than 100 ECC congregations have sent crews to assist along our devastated gulf coast, many dispatched through CWR connections, and many finding other well conceived places of service. Two dominant Church partners have been Hillcrest Evangelical Covenant Church in Prairie Village, KS and Crossroads Covenant Church in Loveland, CO. In the month of March ‘07 there were over 500 ECC volunteers working in the gulf region. The present main focuses are in Bay St Louis, MS and Phoenix, LA. CWR will be active throughout ‘07in Phoenix (with Hands of Hope) doing new construction. To volunteer, check out www.rebuildingphoenix.com or contact Covenant World Relief.

CWR expects to be working in the region throughout 2007 in the Gulf Region. More than ninety cents of every dollar is going directly to families. Typically, CWR dollars assist families and individuals, but in this instance we have assisted six congregations as they rebuilt their church structure. CWR has been very intentional in its partnerships knowing that the persons of least options before a disaster are also the ones with the least options after it has passed. CWR wants to be available to those of greatest need and least options. We will run out of funds before we run out of need!

Additional Information

• If you would like to contribute specifically to Hurricane Relief, you may donate online through the Covenant Bookstore at the following secure link by clicking here.

• Learn more about Covenant churches in the Southeast and Midsouth Conferences.

• For more information on new home building in Phoenix, Louisiana, visit www.rebuildingphoenix.com.

• If you are interested in sending a work team, please contact Jim Sundholm through the Covenant Resource Center by phone at 800.338.IDEA/4332 or by email to learn more.