Hundreds are believed dead following a devastating mudslide that destroyed communities on the slopes of Mount Elgon, in eastern Uganda, on Sunday, February 28. To respond to this immediate need and help alleviate the suffering, Church of God Ministries is sending $5,000 in Disaster Relief Funds to career missionaries Tim and Colleen Stevenson.

By David Miller

Church of God believers in Chile spent several anxious days following Saturday’s devastating earthquake, unable to learn the fate of pastors José y Marcela Cisterna and their 3 children. The family had traveled to Los Angeles, Chile, a small city near the quake’s epicenter, to visit relatives. Due to damage to the country’s telecommunications and transportation systems, contact with both the Cisternas and their extended family was impossible.

Church of God Ministries announces that $5,000 in hunger relief funds will be sent immediately  to Chile in response to the earthquake that hit this South American country on Saturday, February 27. The money will be provided to church leaders there to help respond to the critical need for food and water for the victims of this tragedy.

The earthquake that hit Chile on Saturday, February 27, has claimed at least 708 lives, according to the latest BBC reports. Michelle Bachelet, president of Chile, says the death toll is expected to rise further. Two million people had been affected by the 8.8 quake, one of the most severe ever recorded and the largest to hit Chile in fifty years. Reconstruction of homes, highways and public buildings could cost tens of billions of dollars.

Phil Murphy, former missionary to Haiti, has accepted a six-month assignment from Church of God Ministries (CGM) to serve as the field coordinator for the Church of God disaster relief and recovery operations in Haiti. The disaster relief committee of CGM recognized the critical need for a person with Murphy’s skills and connection to guide the activities on the ground as the relief effort transitions into the second phase.

The Disaster Relief Assessment Team currently in Haiti has sent an initial report back to Church of God Ministries. The report highlights their visit to the Jacmel region along the southern coastal peninsula of the island, where several Church of God congregations are located. Meanwhile, the church continues a generous outpouring of love and support through contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund totaling $385,000 thus far. 

The Church of God Ministries (CGM) Disaster Relief Committee is rapidly moving into phase two of the recovery operations for Haiti and has arranged for a second assessment team to travel to Haiti on February 13. In cooperation with church leaders in Haiti and Church of God missionary John Ackerman, the team will conduct a more detailed assessment of the overall situation and travel to the southern part of the country to assess the damage to Church of God congregations in the area hit hardest by the earthquake. A second disbursement of $50,000 in disaster relief funds is being transferred to Haiti to support the ongoing relief and recovery operations.

Individuals and congregations from across the movement continue to respond to the critical need for funds to support the disaster relief and recovery operations in Haiti. Thus far, $234,600 has been donated to the disaster relief fund. The true scope of the devastation for those associated with the Church of God in Haiti has yet to be learned, but a second assessment team is scheduled to go to the country in mid-February and will deliver additional funds to support the relief and recovery effort.

The Disaster Relief committee of Church of God Ministries (CGM) received an initial report from Phil Murphy about the scope of damages and devastation in Haiti on January 12, 2010. Murphy, who traveled to Haiti to deliver the first $10,000 in disaster relief funds from CGM also conducted an assessment of the earthquakes’ affect on Church of God congregations and other ministry works on the island nation. International relief organizations estimate the death toll at over 150,000 with upwards of half a million people displaced and without shelter. In answering the call for assistance, CGM has received more than $53,000 in disaster relief donations from individuals and congregations.

As of Thursday, January 21, 2010, over $16,000 had been received and processed by Church of God Ministries to support the disaster relief effort in Haiti. More donations are anticipated as congregations from across North American and around the world are responding to the devastation caused by the earthquake that shook the small island nation last week. Many ministry organizations associated with the Church of God with work in Haiti are mobilizing.