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TSUNAMI UPDATE
Heartfelt thanks to all the people and the churches of our
family who have responded to our One Great Hour of Sharing
appeal for Tsunami relief. To date we have received more than
$45,000, and the donations keep on coming.
Our primary distribution has been to help the people, friends
and neighbors of the Travencore Church Council, our sponsored
mission in Tamil Nadu, India. (Information on TCC and the recent
effects and response to the Tsunami is available on our website
at http:// www.naccc.org). The southeastern coast of India was
among the hardest hit in the country.
Our relationship with the Travencore Church Council is
longstanding. The work comprises more than 30 churches, several
schools, a hospital and a medical clinic. Rev. Kenaz Solomon is
the lead pastor of the council, a post he’s held for many years.
His and their particular concern is with the village, church and
neighbors of Puthalam, a beach village on the southeastern-most
tip of the coast of India.
Other relief efforts and designations for other regions affected
by the Tsumami, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand, will be
channeled through the local agencies of Church World Service and
the Red Cross.
By all accounts, it will take years to recover and rebuild what
has been lost. We will need to be mindful, prayerful and planful
in our keeping faith with those affected by the disaster.
Yet even now, our charity is helping people cope and bearing
fruit. We received the following communication from Rev. Solomon
on January 17:
“Many many thanks for your support to Tsunami relief. We thank
our Lord for people like you, churches and individuals who come
to our rescue at a time of grave crisis like this.
“What we have in mind is to buy two acres of land (500 meters
away from the ocean) and distribute it to those who completely
lost their houses. We talked about this to some of the villages
including the village head man and they are very much excited
about this plan. This way, we also feel that your contributions
are well spent. It is a long term solution.
“We are in the process of finding some land which is not very
expensive as well as not far away from the village. If we
provide plots, some international organization, it seems, is
willing to build houses for them. 37 families lost their houses.
We plan to provide 4 cents (1750 sq. feet) of land to each
family. At a rough estimate, it will cost $400 for a plot. We do
not know how much funds we could manage to find. We will divide
what we have among the affected families. The rest will be met
by the families concerned. I have to do work in the church also,
but village folks come first.
“We are maintaining a separate account for relief. When we
receive your support, we will send receipt. Further when we
distribute funds to the people, we will send you some pictures
and a statement how money is distributed. Thank you.”
And thank you again for your response. God is very much at work
in your prayers and contributions. Let’s continue to work
together to keep faith and hope alive for those in need.
Rev. John D. Carson
Associate Executive Secretary
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