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Lutheran Disaster Response
> Helping in Hardship
helping in hardship
Recovery
from disaster takes years, not days or weeks. Lutheran Disaster
Response is modeled on the concept of long-term recovery and meeting
the unmet needs of those affected. Despite the stories of terror and
tragedy often heard on the news, our LDR coordinators and volunteers
bring great help to those who have suffered great loss. In turn, they
meet disaster survivors filled with hope and perseverance.
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Hardship Grants
As one of its four core components,
LDR offers Hardship Grants after a disaster has taken place.
Grant applications are solicited
from
LDR affiliate organizations,
who distribute the funds to individuals, families, and congregations
in the affected area.
Hardship grants meet unmet needs by
allowing those affected to purchase food, clothing, diapers,
gas, medications, and other essentials. It allows for a
sense of normalcy in the midst of chaos. |
Frank and Georgia
Frank and his wife Georgia lived in a small home in East Biloxi. A
ten-foot storm surge swept through their house, taking all of their
possessions with it. Georgia waited out the storm on the roof while
Frank stood on his tiptoes, with water up to his neck, holding on to
their two dogs. Their lives were completely devastated. With nowhere
else to turn for shelter, Frank, who is disabled and unable to stand
for long periods of time, sat each day and slept each night in his
favorite old recliner. The recliner had seen better days, and it
smelled of musty mildew and mold, never having properly dried from the
storm.
Then, LDR volunteers from Bethel Lutheran Church in Biloxi and
Christus Victor Lutheran Church in Ocean Springs found them temporary
housing while their house was being cleaned out, and arranged for a
FEMA trailer to be placed in their front lawn. LDR volunteer teams
mucked out the house and eradicated the mold and made repairs to the
roof. On top of everything, the volunteers decided that Frank’s old,
soggy recliner simply would not do. So they purchased him a brand new
one and set it up so that he could watch them work.
Tom's House
Tom and his young family live in eastern
Pennsylvania. The day after purchasing their first home, ten inches of
water from the heavy rains of Hurricane Ivan flooded the first floor.
Less than seven months later, after the damages from the first flood
had been repaired, the nearby Lehigh River flooded its banks once
more. When the family hired a contractor to make the repairs for a
second time, their money was taken, but little work was done.
Then a Lutheran Disaster Response family
advocate spent some time talking with them and assessing their needs.
A Lutheran congregation provided them with stable, affordable housing
in a vacant parsonage. Now several teams of faith-based volunteers are
rebuilding their home. Not only will Tom and his family soon have
their home back, but volunteers--complete strangers who gave of
themselves without asking for anything in return--have renewed their
spirits.
Want to hear stories from LDR volunteers?
Click here. |
