Greetings to you in the name of Christ Jesus,

You have all seen the devastating path of massive destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina last week to southern Louisiana, Mississippi, and other areas along the Gulf Coast. The Gulf Cost region is still experiencing the strong impact of this storm. Initial assessments have been conducted and ELCA Domestic Disaster Response (and Lutheran Disaster Response, our collaborative ministry with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod) have been coordinating our emergency response with our other faith-based and community disaster partners.

The Southeastern Synod congregations have been incredibly fortunate in that only a few churches sustained damage. While the damage to our churches may have been minor, others did not fair so well.

The home of Pastor Barbara and John Hunter (Grace Lutheran Church, Long Beach, MS) was totally destroyed. Even though the church was without electricity, they sheltered several families with only food, water and a propane grill for over a week. Through the generosity of a family from Epiphany Lutheran Church in Suwanne, a motorhome has been donated and Pastor Barbara and John now have a place to live while they pick up the pieces of their lives. Grace Church will serve a distribution site for relief supplies for the Long Beach area.

Christus Victor Lutheran Church in Ocean Springs, MS – the administrative building has sustained serious damage. Associate in Ministry Suzie Harvey rode out the storm at the church with over 30 families. Suzie found out her home sustained some damage, but was livable, however she chose to stay at the church. Initially, the situation at Christus Victor was grim. The church fortunately had recently received a generator through the work of Bob Tribble, the Southeastern Synod Lutheran Disaster Response Coordinator, but the gasoline was being used quickly. They had water, but it had to be boiled before use. Prior to the arrival of FEMA and the Red Cross, Suzie and her group made heroic efforts to keep the church open for those in need, despite the chaos in the surrounding area, including protecting the church from potential looters.

Pastor Jan Marver, new transistion pastor at Christus Victor, was safely out of the area during the storm attending her son’s wedding. There was some initial fear about her home, but there was no irreparable damage done.

Through the efforts of Suzie and Dr Morgan Gordy, Diaconal Minister and nurse, Christus Victor is now serving as a major clinic and shelter for the homeless and a distribution center for relief supplies in the Ocean Springs area. Dr Gordy was issued a Letter of Call from the Southeastern Synod council on September 9 to serve as part-time Assistant to the Bishop-Mississippi Gulf Coast Recovery.

Pastor Gerald Bultman and his family, Bethel, Biloxi, MS evacuated to Georgia and have since returned to Biloxi to find his home and church in need of clean up but no serious damage done. Pastor Gerry let us know, “We lost a bunch of shingles but no apparent damage to ceilings and interior of our home. Trees and branches all over the yard have already been picked up by the city. All leaves remaining on the trees are dead and it looks like winter with a lot of broken limbs left hanging…It is absolutely horrible and unbelievable what that wall of water and tidal surge did!…we worked to remove shingles and trees from the church, while setting up a distribution center for several trailer loads of supplies that were provided by synod congregations in Atlanta area. We are distributing them now to our local refugees. Pray for us as we seek to get back on our feet again that we may not lose hope and grow weary.”

Bethel Church will continue to serve as a distribution center for the community and in the near future will house an ELCA clinic.

Pastor Karnig Kazanjan, St Paul’s, Mobile, AL had some damage to his home. The church suffered minor damage and is also currently being set up as a distribution center for relief materials.

Pastor Beth DeVan, Martin Luther, Mobile, AL also suffered some damage to her home. The area of Mobile where the church is located was flooded, but miraculously, the church only sustained one broken window in the fellowship hall and the destruction of the outside church sign.

Pastor Craig Bowyer, Grace, Gulf Shores, AL, Pastor Bill Funk, Holy Trinity, Daphne, AL, Pastor Bob Blanton, Trinity Jackson, MS and Pastor Tom Clark, Ascension, Jackson, MS all report their homes and churches sustained minor damage.

As soon as the roads were opened Hal Shope, LDR Coordinator for Volunteers, Bob Tribble and I headed to Mississippi to take fuel, water, food and emergency relief to our congregations in the affected area. The most incredible moment for me was to witness the joy that simply bringing light to those who had been without electricity for several days in the fellowship hall at Grace, Long Beach brought. The partnership we share with Heather Feltman, national director of Lutheran Disaster Response, Bob, Hal and so may who are responding to this horrific disaster is one of the most inspiring witnesses I have ever seen. We are responding together in the name of the living Christ.

Initial relief efforts coordinated with Lutheran Episcopal Services in Mississippi set up staging areas for donations of food, water and medical supplies that began pouring in as soon as roads were open. The synod office was inundated with phone calls with offers of help, donations, volunteers, etc and the phone system was quickly overwhelmed. We have set up a link on the synod website, www.elca-ses.org, for volunteers. To volunteer to serve on a clean up crew or to assist with donations, simply go to the website and click the link “Volunteer to Help.” Please use the website if at all possible. We are working with Lutheran Disaster Response to build a database of volunteers to deploy to the affected areas. Along with coordinating emergency response to victims in of Hurricane Katrina, Bob Tribble, ELCA Southeastern Synod Lutheran Disaster Response Coordinator is working with other relief agencies in the affected areas to set up “tent cities” to house volunteer groups near our congregations in South Mississippi. These tent cities should be ready for occupation at the first of October. For those who wish to offer hospitality for evacuees or to foster children, PLEASE contact your state Emergency Management Agency or contact your local American Red Cross chapter (www.redcross.org).

On September 9, 2005 The Synod Council also established the following funds:

Katrina Recovery Fund

A designated account established for the purpose of providing aid to congregations and others in the Southeastern Synod impacted by Hurricane Katrina.

and  

Katrina Pastors Support Fund   

(Includes Clergy, Associates in Ministry, and Diaconal Ministers)

A designated account established for the purposes of: (1) assisting Southeastern Synod congregations significantly impacted by Hurricane Katrina in meeting their financial commitments to their rostered leaders (pastors, associates in ministry, and diaconal ministers), (2) making disaster relief grants to rostered leaders serving Southeastern Synod congregations significantly impacted by Hurricane Katrina, and (3) paying salary, benefits, and travel expenses to a part-time synod staff person called by the Synod Council as Assistant to the Bishop/Mississippi Gulf Coast Recovery.

Please send contributions to

ELCA-Southeastern Synod 

(please designate “Katrina Recovery Fund” or "Katrina Pastors Support Fund" )

100 Edgewood Ave, Suite 1600

Atlanta, GA 30303

To assist with recovery efforts, along with the call for Diaconal Minister Morgan Gordy, the Revs Myrna and Robert Kysar have been appointed as Assistants to the Bishop/Liasions for Lutheran Episcopal Services in Mississippi (non-salaried) and The Rev Julian Gordy has been appointed as Assistant to the Bishop/Katrina Recovery Funds (non-salaried).

We are also planning some specific synodical responses. First among these will be Assisting Ministers For Pastoral Care. We are seeking, first, Southeastern Synod pastors who will be appointed by me, deployed to the congregations of the devastated areas for no less than 1-2 weeks and under local supervision by the congregational pastor. This is a non-salaried position, but reasonable expenses for those appointed will be recompensed with receipts. These persons must be self-sustaining (i.e. In a motorhome or rv with their own provisions, water and fuel.) We will also assign pastors from outside the synod once we have had an opportunity to speak with their bishops to assign them to the most appropriate area. Any pastors, Associates in Ministry, Diaconal Ministers, or Deaconesses interested in this position should contact Elaine Schwartz, the Southeastern Synod Director of Communication Resources, at 404-589-1977, ext 235, or eschwartz@elca-ses.org.

Your response to assist with relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina victims has been overwhelming. I am on my way back to the Gulf Coast today and once the recovery schedule is set up, we will be in contact with everyone who has made offers of assistance. We are in this recovery together for the long haul.

God of Creation, we know that your actions are not ones of destruction and despair, but rather of love and healing for those who suffer from its ravaging effects. Send your Holy Spirit to those who are suffering and afraid as a result of wind and waves, as well as to those of us who lift them in prayer and stand ready to support them as best we can. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

The Rev Dr Ronald B Warren

Bishop

ELCA-Southeastern Synod

Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee