UMCOR’s Disaster Response Plan for Haiti

Below is a letter we received from the United Methodist Committee on Relief regarding assistance from international teams to Haiti in response to Hurricane Matthew. UMVIM, SEJ will communicate the needs for teams to deploy or send resources as soon as we have word from UMCOR that it is appropriate to do so.  

Azim Akhtar, UMCOR Haiti’s Head of Mission is experienced in humanitarian assistance. He and the rest of the UMCOR Haiti staff are already at work responding to this current disaster through an UMCOR grant that will provide emergency water and food rations, cooking pots, and other emergency supplies as needed.

One of our primary partners in Haiti over the last six years has been EMH, the Eglise Methodist d’Haiti (Methodist Church of Haiti). Through UMCOR’s support, EMH has already begun to provide food to the survivors of the hurricane. In the coming weeks, UMCOR will continue to explore and develop with EMH additional humanitarian responses.

One of our important attributes of mission in the United Methodist Church is our fervent willingness to volunteer. Local volunteerism is key to connecting the church and the community. The Volunteers in Mission program provides opportunities for volunteers to assist with long-term development, building projects, medical missions, and other activities. In Haiti, volunteer teams from throughout the US have helped build the infrastructure of the church there for decades. 

Because of the strong commitment these partner churches and annual conferences have with specific churches, communities, and districts in Haiti, their hearts have been broken as they have watched reports of damage and loss in the communities to which they have given so much time, energy, and resources. Because of this commitment, many of these partners have selflessly declared their willingness to go now to Haiti to assess damage and discover how they can help. While this level of dedication is admirable, UMCOR is strongly advising that such groups wait until Haiti has fully transitioned from the relief phase to the recovery phase.

In the meantime, visits by teams, even individuals or small teams, would run the risk of doing more harm than good. Well-intentioned volunteers generally and unknowingly take energy and resources from host organizations which they would otherwise use to manage or support humanitarian assistance activities. From a support and logistics standpoint, volunteering in the US is very different from volunteering in other countries. Finally, one of the side benefits of many disaster response activities is that local people are hired and materials, as much as possible are procured locally. For the reasons stated above, and because we have full confidence in our staff on the ground, visiting Haiti at this time would be inappropriate.

When recovery projects for volunteers become appropriate and available, UMVIM teams will be informed through the jurisdictional UMVIM Coordinators, under the guidance of Una Jones, Global Ministries’ Director of Mission Volunteers.

Mission Volunteer Opportunities

If you are being called to serve in mission service beyond a week or ten days, the Mission Volunteer Program sponsored by Global Ministries provides opportunities for individuals and couples to serve from two months to two years in a variety of ministries around the world. Here are some examples:

In Honduras there are ministries that need volunteers to serve as youth leaders, to coordinate team projects, and to minister to children with disabilities.

In Africa, a volunteer is needed at the Malawi United Methodist Church Conference Offices. The position is for an international financial management consultant. This is a partnership with the Church of the Resurrection. The main responsibility is to develop and implement a financial accounting management system.

Our missionary in Chile is seeking a volunteer to serve as a gardener and groundskeeper.

The McCurdey School in Espanola, New Mexico has ongoing needs for directors.

In Haiti there is a need for a couple to serve as volunteers-in-mission team coordinators.

To respond to these volunteer requests and others, become a Mission Volunteer. Apply now at www.missionvolunteers.org in time for our October 21-24 training event. For more information, please contact Malcolm Frazier at mfrazier@umcmission.org or call 212 870-3659.

{Guest Blogger} Introducing Moyo

By Ben Rawlins, Moyo Staff 

When it comes to spirituality and justice, many Christians view these two parts of life and faith as opposed. I’m a contemplative, one person claims. Another says, I’m an activist. But why must we view these two beautiful and necessary aspects of the Christian life as antithetical?

At Moyo, we’re trying to re-imagine the Christian call to spirituality and justice, following in the footsteps of organizations like UMVIM that believe in strong theological thinking as the cornerstone of mission work. Moyo is an interactive website that provides experiences for visitors to confront issues of global importance, engage these issues spiritually, and discover ways to act on them in the world. Through the experience on the website, visitors can begin to integrate the “being” and “doing” of life.

 

On the website, a visitor engages with the issues through a Guided Path. The Guided Path starts with an Encounter, allowing the visitor to learn more about the issue. Then, the visitor moves to a Reflection, which provides a reflective type of experience. Lastly, the visitor moves to an Action. The Action shows different ways of engaging the issue in the world. The Guided Path offers experiences with a variety of creative content – videos, photographs, prose, and poetry. The website also has The Feed, which is a blog-like feature. On The Feed, we’ll offer diverse perspectives on current events and global issues. All together, these experiences are a tool for visitors to see contemplation and action in new ways and engage in the world with spiritually infused, justice-oriented action.

Without a doubt, UMVIM’s mission aligns with the experiences that Moyo provides. Like UMVIM, we want to see “Christian love in action” and start conversations that move people of faith to combine their spirituality with justice action. 

Our website has just recently become live, and we’re launching our first two topics: Water &Restoration of Life and Disaster & Human Dignity. Both of these topics reflect work that UMVIM does all over the world. On Moyo, we feature UMVIM on an Action as a suggested way to volunteer for disaster relief. 

How can you become involved? First, we would love for you to visit the website – feel free to send feedback to us or share with people who you believe might be interested in the mission of Moyo. We’re also looking for contributors to submit creative content to the website! Please share your voice and experiences to Moyo. You can check out our Submission Website for more information on how to do so or you can email the Moyo Team.

As stated above, Moyo is a tool that can provide new ways of thinking about spirituality and justice. We are so grateful that we can partner with groups like UMVIM who complement our mission in such important ways. Moyo is a community – we’re glad you can be a part of it. 

Questions? Contact Jenn Bryant (jbryant@umcdiscipleship.org) or Ben Rawlins (brawlins@umcdiscipleship.org)

{Guest Blogger} UMVIM Staffer Serves in Cuba

UMVIM staff member Leslie Bethea had a unique opportunity to join with a team from the South Carolina Annual Conference on an UMVIM mission to Cuba. This 10-member team was led by former UMVIM, SEJ Executive Director Rev. Nick Elliot. Read on for a little more about Leslie’s time in this country that is still relatively uncharted for most Americans!

Leslie (middle, in the black shirt) with her fellow teammates from the South Carolina Conference.

“We arrived in Havana and took about a 2 and a half hour drive to a Methodist Church where several team members had served before. This was my first time in Cuba, and I was inspired to see how joyful the people were, and I do not mean only the ones we met at the church! The church where the team worked, ate, and slept. UMVIM always emphasizes the importance of relationship-building while serving on mission opportunities; we slept, worked, and ate our meals at the church where we served. It was the most "togetherness" I have ever experienced while serving on a team. Our interpreter, Alba, was so great that I do not think any of us missed the messages in the Bible lessons or church services in which we were a part. We also witnessed the baptism a one-year-old boy, which was incredible to experience. Please join me in prayer for our close Southern neighbors...daily!" Thank you Leslie for not only giving your time to sustainable projects in the Cuba and sharing your heart with us, but also for all you do to keep our office running smoothly!

{Guest Blogger} First UMVIM Team to the "New" Cuba!

The United Methodist Connection spreads far and wide, and even to some places that are hard to reach! UMVIM has actually had a strong presence on the isolated island of Cuba for many years. Just 90 miles away, but virtually unattainable...until now. The first UMVIM team recently returned from Cuba since the new relationship between their country and ours. This team was comprised of members from First UMC Little Rock, Pulaski Heights UMC in Little Rock, Salem UMC in Conway, Arkansas, First UMC Hamburg, and First UMC, Blytheville. We are so grateful to our friends in the South Central Jurisdiction for their service to our neighbors! And thank you so much to team member Nechi Fullerton who filled us in on all of the good work they did with their Cuban counterparts while there:

"The first UMVIM team since the new relationship between Cuba & the USA just returned from a construction mission in Havana. Also the first Cuba mission team from Arkansas and the first Cuba UMVIM of 2015, the 11 member group worked to build professor housing for the Seminario Evangélico Metodista and worshiped with our Cuban sisters and brothers in their churches. Building relationships and taking construction supplies, vitamins, medicines and other much needed items is also a part of the mission.

The seminary was established in 2006 and moved to the current Havana location in 2009 to educate pastors for the rapidly growing Methodist church. The Methodist church in Cuba was dying in the 1990s, but now continues to experience a revival growing rapidly 15% annually, from 92 churches in 1996 to 403 churches and over 700 home churches currently. With over 50,000 members and even more on attendance, it is very inspiring to witness their energy, enthusiasm and love for Jesus. They are hopeful with the new USA/Cuba relations, but find even more hope in the Lord."

Ms. Fullerton also explained to us how staying in steady communication with their partners in Cuba is extremely important to them, as it is easy for them to feel isolated and forgotten. Establishing covenant relationships--which is built not on sporadic service, but on commitment to friendship, prayers, training, and resources between sending and receiving churches--is one of the most important things we teach to team leaders; it's what differentiates a "mission trip" or "service project" from a true mission journey.

She also wanted to let us know that there is much more work to be done, and they are always needing additional teams to work alongside them. Please reach out to us at sejinfo@umvim.org if you would like more information regarding UMVIM teams to Cuba.
 

Summer of Service

As the fall season begins, many volunteers are taking time to reflect on their summer of service.

Bill Seib, a resident of Virginia Beach, traveled to the small Alaskan village of Galena with an UMVIM team. He lived in a military-style tent for two weeks while he helped residents rebuild their homes, which were damaged when the Yukon River spilled over its banks last year. Accessible only by airplane, the remoteness of Galena made Seib and the other volunteers – many of them retired construction contractors – think about how sometimes, making do with “less” can result in more time to build one's relationship with God. “The hardest part is being away from your family for two weeks,” said Seib. 

Seib has been on many UMVIM mission trips, and each one has brought vastly different experiences and reflections. “Whatever my summer holds, UMVIM gives me a chance to go out and be a blessing.”

With your gift to support United Methodist Volunteers in Mission, you empower thousands of volunteers and help to transform lives through God’s love and grace.

While some volunteers can reflect on many different mission trips, some young people are just beginning their foray into a world of service with UMVIM. This past summer, mission trips changed the views of many young people – their stance on God, their career path and their philosophy of life.

Glenn Miller, youth pastor at Northside United Methodist Church in Jackson, Mississippi, traveled with a group of 16 youth and young adults to work at the Bahamas Methodist Habitat, a non-profit outreach ministry of the Bahamas Conference of the Methodist Church that focuses on being a catalyst through disaster response and the promotion of community within the Bahamas. Miller strongly encourages the young people around him to take a mission trip before the age of 20, either internationally or to a place within the U.S. that is vastly different from where they live. “Over the years, I have taken kids on mission trips, and many of them now have interesting careers, or they live abroad and they have served other people in great ways. It's cool when they call and thank me for taking them on their first mission trip.”

The voices of youth are full of passion when they reflect on what their UMVIM-related summer activities mean to them. Laura Kigweba was 19 when she first heard about UMVIM. “I sensed then I was seeing an organization that is committed to making change in the world.”

Another young person, Kylie Foley, plans to be doing some kind of mission service for the rest of her life. Yet her mission trips also made her think about her daily life as a Christian. “...I also found out what I want to do for each day, which is to be a Christian. This is perhaps the most overwhelming and simplest realization I’ve ever had in my life, and has overhauled my limited view on what it meant to be involved with missions.”

Photos courtesy of ODIM, Genna Mansperger, Harold Powers, and Susan Kim

For thousands of volunteers, the summer offered an experience that was life-changing, spirit-changing and God-driven. Help even more volunteers embark on that journey of life and spirit by considering a donation to the United Methodist Volunteers in Mission, Southeast Jurisdiction. 

 A donation can be made online through the Advance to #901875 at umcmission.org/give, or by mailing a check to UMVIM, SEJ, 100 Centerview Drive, Suite 210, Birmingham, AL 35216.

We are so grateful for your continued prayers and support, without which this ministry simply wouldn’t be possible.


Grace and peace,

Paulette West
Executive Director
UMVIM, SEJ

Travel Health Warnings

Please be advised of some health warnings we have been made aware of recently. Regardless of destination, we highly encourage teams and individuals traveling for mission purposes to take advantage of our health insurance coverage. More information can be found on our Insurance FAQ page. It is also important to check with your in-country project leader, the Center for Disease Control and/or the US State Department for vaccination requirements or any other warning before you travel.

AfricaTeams are suspended for the foreseeable future to Sierra Leone due to an outbreak of Ebola, and the countries of Liberia and Guinea are also affected. 

AUGUST 4, 2014 UPDATE: CDC urges all US residents to avoid nonessential travel to Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia because of an unprecedented outbreak of Ebola. Please read these articles for more information: Ebola in Sierra Leone, Outbreak of Ebola in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone

Central America/South American/Caribbean

If traveling to the Caribbean, El Salvador, Guyana, French Guyana or Suriname, please be aware that cases of Chikungunya and Dengue, two mosquito-born illnesses, have been reported in the United States.  Please click HERE to visit the UMVIM, SEJ website, where you can download a release from the Texas State Department of Health. Here you will find more information regarding these illnesses, including symptoms and precautionary measures. 

UMVIM, SEJ keeps a running list of resources as you and your team prepare to travel. Please check with our Travel page frequently for the last information.