On Tue., June 24, WELS Committee on Relief Chairman, Pastor Philip Schupmann, together with Pastor Mark Lindner and Steve Zambo traveled to Baraboo, Wis., and met with a number of pastors and WELS members from eight area congregations. We heard about the flood’s devastating effects on the lives of many of our fellow Christians, their neighbors, and their communities. At the same time we also rejoiced with them to hear how our merciful Lord God had also watched over them and their families. Thankfully, there has been no loss of human life. One of our churches in Elroy, Wis., has some major flood damage in its basement with the possible loss of its handicapped-accessible elevator. Several of our WELS members have suffered the total loss of their homes. In cities like Reedsburg and Rock Springs, many homes and businesses have been totally destroyed. People have been displaced and suffered the loss of their material blessings. Yet in all that bad news we heard one sweet little Christian lady in attendance tell us how the Lord watched over her as emergency personnel in Wisconsin Dells “Ducks” came to her rescue and brought her to safety as her home in the country was surrounded on both sides by rising waters.Pastors Schupmann and Lindner together with Mr. Zambo also made stops in Columbus, Jefferson, and Fort Atkinson, Wis., where they heard again about the floods effects on lives and property. We witnessed firsthand how the City of Jefferson has been split in two because of its main bridge through town closed and still covered with flood waters. Once again we also heard how the Savior protected his people and gave them opportunities to reflect his love in words and actions to the people in their community. Zion in Columbus opened the doors of their school as a Red Cross emergency shelter. Bethany Lutheran Church in Fort Atkinson opened their doors to a local nursing home which had to be evacuated. Most of the residents of that facility and staff called Bethany “home” for almost a week.

The Committee of Relief was able to give grants totaling almost $100,000 to all these congregations, which will be used to help, not only their members, but those people in need around them in their communities. Maybe most importantly most of the congregations affected have been personally visited by WELS Relief team and received the assurance that a gracious God is with them and that the brothers and sisters in WELS are praying for them and will support them in their time of need. As always, whenever the Lord allows such adversities to touch our live and the lives of those outside the family of God, such adversities become “teachable moments” – golden opportunities to share the life giving Gospel with others.

View more pictures of the flood-damaged area of Jefferson, Wis., in the photo gallery.

Among congregations affected are Divine Peace, Milwaukee, and Zion, Elroy, Wis. Divine Peace had 10 inches of toxic water bubble into its basement, causing an estimated $35,000-$40,000 of damage. During the worship service on June 8, the Baraboo River began to overflow and Zion’s basement filled with five feet of water.

In Parkersburg, Ia., a tornado destroyed the homes of five members of Faith, an Evangelical Lutheran Synod congregation, and four families from Good Shepherd, Cedar Rapids, Ia., are among the 24,000 residents that have been evacuated from the city as flood waters continue to rise.

Several states—like Iowa, which has declared disasters in 83 of its 99 counties, and Indiana and Nebraska, which have been declared federal disasters—are currently receiving aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Red Cross has also set up emergency centers in some of the hardest-hit areas, many of them in Wisconsin where another series of storms and heavy rainfall on June 12 caused several cities to begin evacuations; a state of emergency has been declared in 29 counties.

Rev. Philip Schupmann, chairman of WELS Committee on Relief (COR) says that so far only one request for COR funds has been received, since many areas are still being affected by storms. “I certainly encourage people to contact us if they need help and relief,” says Schupmann. “Our committee can’t always be the first ones on the spot after major disasters; we function much better weeks and even sometimes months afterward when FEMA and Red Cross leave and we can get work crews in to help rebuild or clean up.”

Schupmann says the Committee on Relief will continue to monitor the flooding situations throughout the Midwest. “We stand ready to help any of our congregations—their members and their communities—as these natural disasters continue,” he says.

Churches and individuals that have experienced damage are encouraged to contact Rev. Philip Schupmann, chairman of WELS Committee on Relief, at philipschupmann@msn.com..

If you would like to support relief efforts, donations can be sent to WELS Committee on Relief, 2929 N Mayfair Rd., Milwaukee WI 53222; or donate online at www.welsrelief.net.

WELS is providing an initial gift of $25,000 through international relief agencies that are already working in these areas. Some of the agencies and the help they are providing are outlined below. Some have been asking WELS Relief Committee about volunteering in the area. Right now that is impossible since even governments are having a hard time getting in to provide the assistance needed. Many are thankful that there are already relief agencies working in the area and they are being allowed to continue their work with the help of the outside world.

• One group WELS Relief Committee is working through is CARE. They have been working in Myanmar for 14 years, with a range of programs focusing on food, security, health, HIV and AIDS prevention, and water and sanitation. Because of their presence in country, they are one of a few organizations granted permission by the government to respond.

• CARE has 500 local staff members in Myanmar working on projects in 120 villages and towns nationwide

• WELS Relief efforts through international agencies will focus relief efforts on the provision of water, food, shelter materials and sanitation in areas severely affected by Cyclone Nargis. Our response will initially target affected communities in Yangon and Moulemain townships where there is current presence. Assessments have already started in South Dago and Thaketa, two townships in Yangon.

• Initial relief efforts will provide plastic sheeting, food, jerry cans, water purification and oral rehydration solution (for diarrhea) to those affected in South Dago and Thaketa.

International relief agencies have identified this as a Level One Emergency. This means that this is currently the organization’s top priority. The mounting financial needs to assist the victims in this time of crisis are some of the largest some relief agencies have seen. The need is great already and mounting. WELS Relief has been contacted and we are looking for ways to partner together to help provide solutions for people in dire circumstances - consistent with God’s directive to do good to all in need. This is also an opportunity for WELS members to be charitable to those who are suffering.

Pastor Phil Schupmann
Chairman, WELS Relief

To borrow the words of a past Synod President; “All that has needed to be said has been said about the subject, it just hasn’t been said by everyone.” So it is that everything has probably been said that needs to be said about the Katina Relief Project at Crown of Life Lutheran Church in New Orleans, La. (Except maybe that now it is officially ended). But please allow me to add my thoughts.

A week ago Sun., April 20, Crown of Life conducted a special worship service and threw an old fashion southern crawfish boil to thank the nearly 1,200 volunteers who came over the past two and a half years to help restore their church, fellowship hall, parsonage, and homes in their community. The church sign read “Thanks for bringing us home.” It was a bright sunny day, just perfect for the event. Our Synod President and other past volunteers came many miles to help make the event that much more special.

The pastor of the congregation, Pastor David Sternhagen delivered the sermon of the day and as usual, put things in the right perspective for us. He said many times in his sermon; “That we saw it with our own eyes.” (Meaning members, volunteers and community members). Highlighting the many wondrous and sometimes miraculous things the Lord either did for us or though us during and after the hurricane. And then the thank you’s started. Pastor, on behalf of the congregation thanked the volunteers, President Schroeder thanked the volunteers and the congregation for his opportunity to serve and for their partnership in sharing the gospel with the community. Pastor Schupmann thanked the volunteer coordinators and congregational leaders for their service, and we all thanked the Lord for giving us all things through his Son who died for us on the cross so we could live and serve Him and each other.

After the service, the crawfish was dumped on the picnic tables, the band began to play, and people hugged and laughed and shed tears of joy. Tours were given of some of the homes restored, and the thank you’s continued. It was a fitting end to a truly blessed project.

As I reflect back on this relief project and the others I have had the honor and privilege to serve, though each has been completely different and the volunteers who have come to serve are rarely the same folks, the end result is always the same:

1. that salvation through Christ crucified is faithfully proclaimed and;
2. that virtually every volunteer goes away with the perception that they received spiritually more out of their service than the people they served received out of labor from them.

For this, I think I can speak for everyone who has ever volunteered on one of our relief teams. Only one thank you is necessary, THANK YOU LORD. “Not unto us Lord, but unto you be honor and praise.”

Mark Vance
WELS Committee on Relief
Disaster Relief Project Coordinator

Listen

Listen to Pastor Phil Schupmann, chairman for WELS Committee on Relief.

Watch Pastor David Sternhagen’s sermon on streams.wels.net.

My first stop was with Pastor Kapler in Mountain Home, Ark. I arrived there at 9:30 a.m. after a three hour mountain drive through freezing rain. Not fun. I met with Pastor Kapler and five members. One member, Shawn Taylor, is the region’s Thrivent Representative and one of the first volunteers into New Orleans after Katrina. After much discussion, they concluded that they would like to organize a clean up/rebuilding effort similar to New Orleans, but felt they had enough local volunteers to accomplish it. Mr. Taylor will check into Thrivent matching funds. They realize that FEMA and the Red Cross are handling the short term needs and they are focusing their efforts on the long term. They have appointed a coordinator and they will begin to try to identify the families they will assist. I told them we stand ready to assist them with consultation and possible additional funding. I toured the area with Pastor Kapler and the newly appointed coordinator and then took them to lunch. I recommended that they open a separate bank account for the money designated for their project. Pastor Kapler had noted that he was already receiving donations.

I left them at 1:30 p.m. heading for Russellville, Ark., (two and a half hour trip). Got there at 4 p.m., just in time to meet with Pastor Schwerin. The church in Russellville is very small with only about 18 active members. We toured the area near Atkins, Ark. This tornado was much more powerful than the one in Mountain Home - (F4 vs F2). He discussed a few possibilities as candidates for relief funds, which all sounded appropriate to me and I encouraged him to use his discretion as to the distribution of funds. He then asked about giving some of the funds to a local Bank that had set up a “General” relief fund that would disperse funds through an application process. He said they had about $40,000 in the fund and they were anticipating about 100 applicants, which means each applicant would only get about $400 a piece. He wondered if some of our funds could be given to that. I told him that would be fine.  After our visit he said he felt clearer about how the funds should be used and thanked me for helping him identify some prospects that could use some assistance. He said he would contact Pastor Schupmann about the bank possibility and that he would send in the transfer information. I left him at about 6 p.m. more convinced than ever that “in person” visits are vital (when possible).

In Christ,

Mark S. Vance
Disaster Relief Project Coordinator
WELS Committee On Relief
mark.vance@wels.net

Listen as Pastor Philip Schupmann, chairman for WELS Committee on Relief updates us on the devastation and relief efforts taking place in southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

Schupmann Podcast

Listen to the Schupmann Podcast.

The work of Relief is carried out by the Wisconsin Ev. Lutheran Synod with a committee of five. All serve as volunteers. Pastor Schupmann coordinates most of the grants the committee makes by phone and e-mail. When possible, he will also visit major disaster sites and help plan and coordinate relief efforts.

Schupmann is a full time pastor at Resurrection Ev. Lutheran Church in Aurora, Ill. He is a 1978 graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and has served congregations in Illinois for 30 years. Philip is also currently the circuit pastor of the Central Circuit of the Chicago conference and is a member of the Board of Directors of Wisconsin Lutheran Child and Family Service.

Philip and Sara have six adult children. Most are serving full time in the Lord’s work.