In Today's Hotline: Read how UMCOR is responding to needs around the world:

WORLDWIDE: HELP DISASTER SURVIVORS

As relief workers determine the long term effects of the West Sumatra earthquake which killed 704 people, and as thousands of people in the Philippines learn to cope in overcrowded and unsanitary evacuation centers, UMCOR is hard at work helping survivors affected by disasters in the Philippines, the South Pacific, and Indonesia by providing them with the most basic needs.

UMCOR's field offices are bringing relief to affected communities, and are working to develop long-term recovery plans to assist in rebuilding. Your gifts to these disaster-hit areas are needed.

Please give to South Pacific Earthquake and Tsunamis, UMCOR Advance #982450, Indonesia Emergency, UMCOR Advance #217400, and Philippines Emergency, UMCOR Advance #240235.

RESOURCES: WORLD FOOD DAY, OCT. 16

According to Bread for the World, a Christian organization seeking justice for the world's hungry people, an estimated 1.2 billion people in the world go hungry. Three million children worldwide under five years of age die because they are undernourished.

World Food Day is on Oct. 16. Help create awareness about world hunger and support UMCOR hunger programs by using the available resources.

Learn about world hunger and poverty by downloading Ten Facts About Hunger a new online resource to share with your local church or community group. You may also download World Food Day: Creating Sustainable Systems church bulletin, which highlights how youth and adults in Armenia are learning farm management, beekeeping and nutrition. A World Food Day Power Point slide is also available to collect a special offering toward UMCOR-supported hunger programs.

Observe World Food Day with your gifts to World Hunger and Poverty, UMCOR Advance #982920.

GEORGIA: BRINGING HOME THE "DOUGH"

Mr. Shakro, is a 55 year-old man originally from Abkhazia, the Republic of Georgia. He lives with his wife, mother and four children at the Kopitnari camp for the internally displaced in Western Georgia. Since 1993, Mr. Shakro has been working odd jobs to support his family. Thanks to a Finn Church Aid-funded project and a communal bakery established by UMCOR, Mr. Shakro is now working full time and bringing home the "dough."

"For the past sixteen years we have been denied the possibility to fully participate in the process of social integration," said Mr. Shakro. "UMCOR has made us feel that we are needed and protected by others."

UMCOR and Finn Church Aid, a Finland-based organization that works to promote life, justice and human dignity in the world, rehabilitated communal baths, laundries, sports and recreation centers, as well as constructed communal bakeries at the Khoni and Kopitnari Centers for the displaced.

Support the livelihoods of displaced people in Western Georgia by giving to Georgia Emergency, UMCOR Advance #250305.

JFON: BAY AREA JFON SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED

Last month, the California-Nevada Annual Conference opened a Justice for Our Neighbors (JFON) clinic at Temple UMC in San Francisco where dozens of volunteers worked together to welcome and serve their first nine clients.

Lupe Afu, a college student who worked as an intern for JFON Baltimore-Washington through GBGM's summer internship program, caught the JFON vision and returned home determined to get her church involved. She brought together a group of like-minded, passionate people to work alongside her.

Support this ministry that makes a significant difference in the lives of immigrants and asylum seekers in the US. Give to JFON, UMCOR Advance #901779.

EVENT: CHANGE THE WORLD CONFERENCE-OCT. 22-23, 2009

UMCOR is a sponsor and workshop leader for the upcoming Change the World Conference in Tipp City, Ohio on Oct. 22-23, 2009. Hosted by Ginghamsburg Church in Ohio, the conference provides tools for the church to engage in effective ministry.

Featured speakers include Ruby Payne, author of "A Framework for Understanding Poverty," Ron Sider, professor, evangelical speaker, writer and president of the Evangelicals for Social Action, Trevor Hudson, South African pastor, author, and speaker, and Mike Slaughter, pastor of Ginshamsburg Church.

For more details about the conference or to register, please click here.

UMCOR provides emergency relief in many areas of the world. To find out more about UMCOR's ministries, please visit umcor.org. You can donate to any project by placing a contribution in the offering plate at a local United Methodist church; by sending a check to UMCOR, PO Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068; or by calling 1-800-554-8583, where credit card donations are accepted. You can also give online at givetomission.org. UMCOR is exempt from tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors.

United Methodist Committee on Relief
General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church
Room 330, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115
Voice Phone: 1-212-870-3816; FAX: 1-212-870-3624
Email: umcor@gbgm-umc.org
Web: http://www.umcor.org

UMCOR. Be There. Be Hope.
UMCOR's mission is to alleviate human suffering-whether caused by war, conflict, or natural disaster-with open minds and hearts to all people.