VALLEY FORGE, Aug 19—Rising floodwaters in Pakistan have covered approximately one-fifth of the country. Some 2 million people have lost their homes and 8 million are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to the United Nations.
International Ministries is supporting the lifesaving efforts of Church World Service (CWS) in Pakistan through your gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing. An initial grant of $20,000 was released to CWS this week.
“The people of Pakistan need our continued prayers and help by providing immediate relief,” said Lisa Rothenberger, World Relief Officer for American Baptist Churches USA. “It’s our privilege to partner with CWS on this relief effort—they have been on the ground delivering assistance since the flooding began.”
Massive floods, earthquakes, political upheaval—Pakistanis have survived them all in recent years. The beleaguered nation has suffered a major natural disaster every year since 2005. The current floods are washing away communities that were still rebuilding from the 2005 earthquake.
A 50 year-old woman who was displaced by the floods told Dennis Joseph, associate director for CWS in Pakistan, “I lost my husband in the earthquake, and I was living in a [pre-fabricated] shelter with my son after that. This has now been destroyed as half of the land under the shelter was washed away.”
The organization’s current efforts include providing food and non-food items, emergency shelters and health services. Some 70 tons of food have already been distributed with 630 tons of food on the way. CWS is providing medical assistance through mobile clinics and by fortifying local hospitals with additional supplies and medicine. A full description of the response is available on the CWS website: www.churchworldservice.org.
Donations to One Great Hour of Sharing continue to be needed. Donors can give through the IM website: www.internationalministries.org/topics/pakistan_flood, or by check to: “OGHS – Pakistan Flood” and mailed to: International Ministries, P.O. Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482-0851. Support can also be given by American Baptists through their church by making checks payable to the church with “One Great Hour of Sharing – Pakistan Flood” written in the memo section. These gifts will be sent from the church through the American Baptist region.
One Great Hour of Sharing is administered by the World Relief Committee of the General Board. The Committee facilitates American Baptist emergency relief, disaster rehabilitation, refugee work, and development assistance by establishing policy guidelines and overseeing distribution of the annual One Great Hour of Sharing offering.
Photos by Church World Service