A Response to Gilbert: The Fund Is There
Episcopal News Service. October 13, 1988 [88215]
NEW YORK (DPS, Oct. 13) -- In mid-September, Hurricane Gilbert rampaged across the Caribbean causing untold damage. The computer images of the monstrous, swirling storm -- one of the strongest ever recorded -- and scenes of incredible devastation dominated the headlines and television news for days. Thanks to advance warning of the storm's birth and subsequent path, loss of life was relatively small.
In the hours and days following the storm, telephones in the office of the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief rang constantly. People moved by the plight of the storm's victims wanted to know what they could do to help.
How did the Fund respond? In a real sense, the Fund was there at the scene of the disaster, to provide assistance. It was not present in the sense that staff members went to make on-site evaluations. But the Fund's presence was manifested in the work of the local Anglican churches. The Episcopal Church, as part of the Anglican Communion, can rely on the local Anglican presence to provide on-the-spot assessments of needs. The Fund also relies on its ecumenical partners to provide on-site reports.
In responding to the crisis, the Fund released several specific emergency grants within a matter of days:
- $15,000 to the Caribbean Council of Churches through Church World Service, an ecumenical group;
- $15,000 to the Diocese of Northern Mexico to help, specifically, 39 families left in grave need by the storm;
- $15,000 to the Diocese of Haiti;
- $5,000 to the Diocese of Venezuela.
These emergency grants represent only the initial response to the unprecedented damage that the hurricane caused. Rebuilding will take months, if not years.
The Fund works in tandem with the Church and other agencies. These agencies that are in partnership with the Fund have the capacity to respond to immediate disaster needs. A well-coordinated international response can be made within hours of a major disaster, with trained medical teams and relief workers being rushed to provide immediate assistance. These agencies provide blankets, tents, emergency food, and medical supplies to meet the immediate needs of the survivors. The Fund does not attempt to duplicate these efforts, working instead through the existing agencies with this expertise.
The Fund's efforts in disaster relief are directed ecumenically, or through local Anglican churches or agencies. The Fund, for instance, helps with the rebuilding that follows a disaster: building materials are needed; utilities must be restored; people who have lost crops and livestock must be helped to replace them.
To carry out this ministry, the Fund relies on the assessment of the local bishop concerning the needs of the diocese -- and responds accordingly. After a major disaster, this can take some time. (It took a week, for instance, before communication could be established with the Bishop of Jamaica.) The Fund also uses its ecumenical contacts, notably the relief and development arms of the World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches (Church World Service).
Both the Diocese of Jamaica and the Diocese of Northern Mexico are assessing the damage that has been caused and what is needed to repair it. (The Bishop of Northern Mexico, by the way, has asked his clergy to contribute a day's salary for the relief of hurricane victims.) These diocesan reports are then sent to the Office of the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief at the Episcopal Church Center in New York and are evaluated by the staff. Then they go through the Fund's normal granting procedures and, based on the action of the Board of Directors, money is released.
The immediate disaster caused by Hurricane Gilbert is over. It is now time to rebuild lives that have been disrupted, if not shattered, by the storm. It is time to work together with the people who have been hurt and to give them both help and hope. This is the ministry of the Fund in a disaster: to provide a small amount of emergency assistance to the Church, and then to work with the Church in helping people put their lives back together.
The Fund continues to receive money for Jamaica and other areas severely affected by the hurricane. Contributors may send checks to the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief, Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017. Checks should be designated: "Hurricane Gilbert Relief."