Category Archives: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
CBS Special Highlights Religious Response in Haiti
From a recent Global Ministries press release:
Examining the faith community’s ongoing assistance to survivors of last January’s devastating earthquake in Haiti, the CBS Television Network will broadcast the religion special “Haiti: Religion’s Response to Disaster” on Dec. 5.
After a 7.0 magnitude earthquake ravaged Haiti, some of the first responders were faith-based relief organizations. These groups continue to assist Haitian survivors.
The special chronicles faith-based groups’ relief efforts begun immediately after the quake and the progress made in the past 10 months. Members of Church World Service (CWS), Catholic Relief Services, Jewish Distribution Committee and United Methodist Committee on Relief share stories about their work with viewers.
Here is a listing of confirmed broadcast times (which can be sorted by state). Plan ahead – you may have to set your dvr to record it if you’re in a 4 am broadcast market.
Helping Hands in Service
Volunteers have been busy the last two weeks at Northwood Christian Church, Beaumont, TX and across Nashville, TN. The work at Northwood is moving along well as volunteers have finished installing the flooring (except carpeting), hung and painted all doors, and completed work on the exterior of the building as well.
In Nashville, volunteers from Beargrass Christian Church, Louisville, KY, and First Christian Church, Hopkinsville, KY, helped in the flood recovery efforts last week and weekend. This week, volunteers are in town from Wauseon, OH and from Janesville, Wisconsin. They have been busy on several jobs, including hanging siding on one home and doing sheetrock work on another.
The work in Nashville will continue for the next two years (and possibly longer). Have you scheduled your mission trip for next Spring or Summer? Volunteers are also needed in Lake Charles, LA and, if those places are full, work remains in Slidell, LA, too. Visit our “mission opportunities” page at Disciples Home Missions to start planning you trip today!
Related Articles
- A Flood Story – Southeast Nashville Recovery (justnashville.wordpress.com)
Two Days Down…
The volunteers are making great progress on Northwood Christian Church’s new building. We started the week with volunteers from Florida, Washington, Kansas, and Missouri plus a host of long term volunteers. Last night, reinforcements from Missouri arrived (plus a few more long term volunteers) and got right to work this morning. The north end of the building is now sided and mostly painted. More than a dozen doors have been hung inside. Most of the floor tile has been laid and grouted. Trim is cut, countertops installed, and exterior doors are painted. Members from Northwood worked alongside the volunteers today and spirits were high as everyone enjoyed the fabulous weather.
Fall Blitz Underway – Dedication Postponed
The fall blitz is kicking off today at Northwood Christian Church in Beaumont, TX. Volunteers will be busy the next two weeks completing the work on their new sanctuary, classroom and office space. More details and pictures will be coming. One important change has been made: the church has decided to postpone the dedication of the new building until January 2011.
Fall Blitz in Beaumont, TX: Volunteers Needed
Northwood Christian Church in Beaumont, TX, housed hundreds of volunteers who helped neighbors rebuild their homes and their lives following Hurricanes Rita (2005) and Ike (2008). Volunteers took over their multipurpose building for weeks at a time and members at Northwood were thrilled to provide the space – even though they had lost their main building, which contained their sanctuary, classrooms, and office space, during Hurricane Rita. On a typical Sunday morning, the rec room of their multipurpose building was transformed into a worship space. Sunday afternoon, the space was then converted to accommodate work groups. Now, after five years of working, dreaming, praying, and planning, Northwood is on the verge of returning to a permanent place of worship. This summer, Disciples Volunteering coordinated a major building effort. Volunteers from congregations across the country came to frame, roof, side, insulate, and sheetrock a new building complete with sanctuary, office, and classroom space on the footprint of their old building. The new building is nearly complete.
Now is the time to finish the work. Now is the time to thank the folks at Northwood for their sacrificial giving despite their own loss. Now is the time to volunteer, to spend a day, a week or two weeks in Beaumont. Disciples Volunteering is calling for volunteers to come Get Dirty for Jesus! and help finish the building.
The work will take place Nov. 7 – 21. The new building will be dedicated on Nov. 21 at 3:00 pm in January 2011 in a special time of worship and celebration. More information is available here and a flyer for printing and sharing is here. Register at this link. A registration fee covers the cost of housing and all meals; weekly and daily rates are available. Please contact Brenda Tyler at 888-346-2631 or btyler@dhm.disciples.org with any questions.
Celebrating Ecumenical Efforts
In April and May of this year, Disciples Volunteering and Week of Compassion invited Disciples to participate in a special project sponsored by Church World Service. Dubbed “Neighborhood: Cedar Rapids,” the project brought together more than 500 volunteers from 10 denominations to rebuild 12 homes severely damaged in the Iowa flood of 2008. Lutheran Disaster Response has now released a short video celebrating that effort. As we continue to look for ways to work with our partners in faith, we give thanks for projects like “Neighborhood: Cedar Rapids” that bring us together to serve and witness in Jesus’ name.
Yakama Mission Work This Week
Volunteers are hard at work this week in Yakama, Washington, making repairs at this historic Disciples Mission Center. The parsonage roof needed torn off and replaced. The parsonage is also in need of new insulation and some gutting and repairs inside. The log church is also due to have some logs replaced, some rechinking work performed, and other repairs. Enjoy some pictures of the volunteers in action, and read more on the Yakama Mission blog here and here.
