News & Features
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UMCOR Provides Relief for Displaced People in Sri Lanka
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is providing direct assistance to people displaced by the recent weeks of fighting in Sri Lanka.
Maize Distribution Brings Relief to Zimbabwe
Because of a difficult agricultural season combined with hyperinflation, most households in Zimbabwe report they are now eating fewer meals.
Methodists Provide Compassionate Response in Myanmar
While much of the world watched in horror after Cyclone Nargis devastated southern Myanmar (Burma), the Methodist Church (Lower Myanmar) MC(LM) sprang into action—providing ministries of healing, food, shelter and counseling to people in great need.
United Methodists Address Red River Threat
From sandbagging to evacuating, United Methodists have helped address the flood threat along the Red River Valley in the Dakotas and Minnesota.
"Miraculous" Giving for Sudan at Ginghamsburg Church
"I was blown away once again," said Karen Smith of Ginghamsburg Church's fifth Christmas Miracle Offering for Sudan.
United Methodists Clean Up After Oklahoma Tornadoes
United Methodists are continuing to assist cleanup and salvage operations following the tornados that struck Oklahoma on Feb. 10-11.
Out of the Ashes
Since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2002, over five million Afghan refugees have journeyed home to Afghanistan after living in Pakistan or Iran for more than 20 years.
Grant Provides for Expansion at Kissy United Methodist Hospital
Kissy United Methodist Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone, will now be able to double the capacity of the Maternal and Child Health unit through a recent grant awarded to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR).
The Story of Christine and Her Son Stephen
Christine, 13 years old, is a maiden who was forced by her parents to marry early as tradition requires here.
UMCOR Issues $200,000 Challenge Grant for Sierra Leone Mosquito Nets
United Methodists are taking on a new challenge to provide every child under five years-old in Sierra Leone with a long-lasting insecticide treated bed net.
The Long Road Home: Allen Zomonway’s Community-Based Efforts to Prevent Malaria
Allen Zomonway tackles the problems of malaria and other community health needs with passion.
Water and Sanitation Education Improve Health
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is helping bring better health to children in 31 schools in Aceh Province, Indonesia, through innovative water and sanitation programs.
Preventing AIDS with Information
In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), AIDS education is reaching a more diverse population thanks to an UMCOR program that is being led by Dr. Kasanka Mwana Ngoie.
German Central Conference Gives Generously to Fight Malaria in Sierra Leone
A generous gift of approximately $130,000 (100,000 Euros) from the German Central Conference will provide mosquito nets in a national net campaign to take place in Sierra Leone this November.
Church Clinic Sponsors AIDS Day Observance in Guinea
More than 3,000 people in three communities took part in World Aids Day observances sponsored by a United Methodist clinic in the West Africa country of Guinea.
Hundreds Tested for HIV/AIDS in Kenya
In Nakuru, Kenya, World AIDS Day marked an important event as more than 2,000 Kenyan residents lined up for HIV/AIDS testing.
UMCOR and Equal Exchange Celebrate United Methodist “Tons” of Fair Trade Support
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) and its partner Equal Exchange, a worker-owned co-operative dedicated to fair trade, celebrate the efforts of United Methodists everywhere who participated in UMCOR’s 100-Ton Challenge by purchasing fairly traded products through UMCOR’s Coffee Project.
Fair Trade Moves Congregants to Action
On April 5, worshipers at Beach Lake United Methodist Church in Pennsylvania waved palm fronds as they joined the annual Palm Sunday celebration that marked Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
Self-Sufficient Farming
Bañol moved to Riosucio, a town in the State of Chocó, Colombia where she heard about ASPROCAFE, a fair trade coffee co-operative, in hopes of finding a better way to support herself and her family.
Buy Chocolate, Help Farmers, Agency Says
When June Kim says she’d like everyone to buy a ton of chocolate for Easter, she isn’t kidding.
Raise an Eco-Palm Branch
Anna Sentana lives in the town of Carmelita, Guatemala where she and her community rely on the harvesting, processing, and selling of palms for their livelihood.
UMCOR’s 100-Ton Challenge is Over Halfway Mark
Since the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) issued its 100-Ton Challenge for United Methodists to increase their purchases of fairly traded goods on World Fair Trade Day 2008, 56.5 tons have been purchased towards this goal.
Going the Distance
Luke Yaryar,42 of Tonoetown, Liberia walks a long distance to reach UMCOR's Farmer Field School training in Whiegblekon, Buchanan in Liberia.
For You Yourselves Were Once Aliens
On World Refugee Day, a group of youth and adults in the Western New York Annual Conference gathered to learn more about what it means to be uprooted and displaced.
Refugee Ministry at Gig Harbor UMC
Hanaa’s life has been full of challenges. When war broke out in Iraq, she and her family fled their home to live in Jordan.
Immigrants Find Legal Help at Clinic
The 18-year-old woman in Katherine Esquivel’s office is hunched over the table and nervously wringing her hands. She speaks almost no English and hesitates to utter the few words she does know.
Rebuilding Lives in South Sudan
Teresa Juan spent 20 years as a refugee in Uganda, fleeing the civil conflict that wreaked havoc across southern Sudan for more than two decades, leaving more than one and a half million people dead.
UMCOR Helps a Gaza Family Find Refuge
Hanadi (not her real name) has faced many challenges in her thirty-three years.
Journey to Hope
Chuma is among millions of Zimbabweans who crossed the border into South Africa in search of a place of refuge and a better life.
Brooklyn Church Offers a Warm Welcome to Hundreds of Immigrants
When Pastor Pauline Wardell-Sankoh came to John Wesley United Methodist Church in 2000, she did not realize the extent of passion for immigration justice that had begun to take root a year earlier.
A Special Family Reunion
"There is nothing more fulfilling than knowing you have been able to help bring a family together," says Justice For Our Neighbors (JFON) attorney TJ Mills who recently had the privilege of going to the airport with a client, Barnabe, where he joyfully greeted his family after eight years of separation.
UMCOR Sager Brown -- a Community Resource
At the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) Sager Brown campus in Baldwin, La., volunteers from across the US assemble relief supply kits to ship wherever they are needed in the world.
UMCOR West Prepares to Officially Open
Volunteers have been hard at work preparing the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) West Office and Depot for the grand opening on May 30 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
New Executive Joins UMCOR in Western Jurisdiction Office
Rev. Brian Diggs is joining the organization, directing the ministry of the newly opened Western Jurisdiction Office in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Cleaning Buckets a Tangible Expression of Care
“Cleaning buckets” bring hope to survivors in all types of disaster situations, including fires, earthquakes and floods.
UMCOR Sager Brown Ships over $4.7 million of Relief Supplies in 2008
UMCOR Sager Brown, the material resource ministry of the United Methodist Committee on Relief, has shipped over $4.7 million in relief supplies internationally and in the continental United States in 2008.
UMCOR Sager Brown Ships Relief Supplies To Neighbors Nearby And Across The World
Over the past week, UMCOR Sager Brown Depot, UMCOR's relief supply warehouse in Baldwin, La., has been buzzing with activity as volunteers and staff work to assemble and ship relief supplies to locations along the US Gulf Coast and to the country of Georgia.
UMCOR Sager Brown Reopens
"When we returned [to UMCOR Sager Brown], it was very emotional to see that everything was okay," said long-term volunteer Judi Siler.
UMCOR Responds to Needs in Sri Lanka
The United Methodist Committee on Relief Non-Governmental Organization (UMCOR NGO) is on the ground in Sri Lanka, working with other humanitarian aid organizations to emergency assistance to those who are escaping conflict.
UMCOR Armenia Receives Grant from State Department
Thanks to a generous grant, there is new hope for people in Armenia who are subjected to human trafficking.
AREGAK: Celebrating 10 Years of Micro-Financing in Armenia
Under sunny skies and with shining faces of smiling children, AREGAK kicked-off day-long celebrations to mark its 10th anniversary of doing business in Armenia.
Georgia Conflict: UMCOR Brings Assistance to the Sick and Injured
The United Methodist Committee on Relief in Georgia will begin distributing some $190,600 in medicines and medical supplies today to 11 hospitals throughout Georgia that are treating those wounded in the recent conflict there.
UMCOR Selected to Lead Case Management Training
New York, NY The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will train as many as 600 case managers to work with families in Texas whose lives were uprooted as a result of Hurricane Ike in September 2008.
UMCOR West Opens in Utah
United Methodists from throughout the Western Jurisdiction gathered on Saturday for the grand opening of UMCOR West office and depot.
Remarkable Michigan Woman Remembers Relief Agency in Will
"A remarkable, independent and generous woman," is how Rev. Cathi Gowin describes Anne Ryckman, a deceased parishioner at St. Paul's United Methodist Church in Grand Rapids, Mich.
UMCOR Directors Approve Funds for US and International Disasters
United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) directors approved $1.9 million in grants to provide long-term assistance for people in the US and Cuba who were affected by the 2008 hurricanes in their semi-annual meeting.
Increasing Health through Leadership and Infrastructure-Building
A recent meeting of bishops and United Methodist health care leaders in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, has led to major capacity-building efforts throughout the Central Conferences in Africa through the assistance and support of the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR).
Latin American, Caribbean and US Churches Explore New Ways of Being in Mission Together
More than 100 Methodist leaders from Latin America, Caribbean and the United States gathered in Mexico City, March 24-27, to strengthen relationships through sending and receiving volunteers and when responding to local disasters.
Human Stories Guide UMCOR’s Hazelwood
When a hurricane is predicted, the Rev. Tom Hazelwood consults weather forecasts and scientific projects to chart its likely path.
