Along with many of you, I have watched in horror as I have seen news reports and Facebook photos of the devastation that ripped across the Midwest in the United States this week [if that link works, it shows some photos of an LDS church building in Joplin that was destroyed]. There’s a helpless feeling as these kinds of natural disasters hit and affect so many lives.

I’m reminded of President Henry B. Eyring’s recent General Conference talk about turning sympathy into action.

So, what can we do to help those in need?

When a disaster strikes, obviously we can’t all be there in person to help people pick up the pieces of their lives. But we can send a little money to help with relief efforts.

I have sent donations to various organizations at different times, but at the top of my list is the LDS Humanitarian Aid Fund. 100% of donations go to help those in need. Not only do donations help in times of natural disaster, but they also help in an ongoing effort to help people worldwide who are living in poor conditions to have a better life.

In terms of emergency response, this article by Michael Otterson talks about the efficient and effective way LDS Humanitarian Services uses donated funds and on-hand supplies (and amazing distribution and collaboration systems) to help people (see news stories on efforts in Haiti, Japan, after Hurricane Katrina, and with tornadoes earlier this year). Brother Otterson explains:

In infrastructure terms, Mormon humanitarian aid is warehouses and trucks, tents and chain saws, hygiene kits and canned food, generators and sleeping bags, flashlights and bottled water. The warehouses, which we call bishops’ storehouses, dot the country. Their more normal focus is on helping church members who are suffering from temporary food and commodity needs, but in a disaster they take on a much broader role, often serving as staging areas for relief efforts. Even before a hurricane makes landfall, trucks are loaded with relief aid at these regional depots and head to the expected disaster areas, where their contents will be needed and used by victims, Mormon or not.

The human side of the equation is the scores of Mormon work crews who typically converge on a disaster area from neighboring states to clean up, remove debris, repair homes and provide comfort. They are well coordinated with other relief services. They are self-motivated and self-managed, arriving with their own self-sustaining supplies in tow. Mormons who are not normally inclined to break their Sabbath day conventions by mowing their own lawns or visiting a supermarket on the Sabbath feel no hesitation in wielding a chainsaw to clear fallen branches from a hurricane victim’s damaged roof, Sunday or not. Service is every bit as much a part of their religious identity as sitting in a pew.

As mentioned, I am grateful to know that every cent I donate goes to help. I appreciate the way the Church coordinates with local relief agencies who are well-connected and -positioned to help in their local communities. And I know that the help will go to people, “Mormon or not.”

I know most people have their preferred charities at times like this, but if you haven’t ever considered LDS Humanitarian Services, take a few minutes to read a little more about them.

Most importantly, regardless of what charity you choose, I hope at times like this, those of us who are able can take a moment to share a little with those who have lost so much.

The post Helping Those in Need – LDS Humanitarian Services appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

(For those interested in contributing in the funds that help the Church provide such financial support, visit the LDS Humanitarian Relief via LDS Philanthropies. (Or you can go directly to the Humanitarian Aid Fund donation page.) 100% of contributions go to helping those in need.)

Elder Holland also updated the press and listeners about the status of LDS missionaries in the country (they are all accounted for and some two hundred (plus) missionaries are being moved out of the affected areas). Updates were also given on Church members and structures.

A video of the full press conferenced [edited] can be found below. You can find more videos from the press conference at the ksl.com website (including questions from the press and answers from Elder Holland and Elder David F. Evans, who is an executive director of the Church’s Missionary Department).

The post Elder Holland on Concern for Japan; Updates on Missionaries, Aid Efforts appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

As reported by the LDS Newsroom, personnel involved in the LDS Church Welfare program in Colombia met with political leaders to determine needs. The Church is helping provide food and water, and is working with local organizations, such as Acción Social, the Red Cross, and the Catholic organization El Minuto de Dios to distribute clothing. The Church will also be working in coming months with Colombia’s Fondo Nacional de Calamidades to distribute thousands of hygiene kits, school kits, newborn kits, blankets, and nearly 400,000 articles of clothing.

How can the Church do this? Just as people of many other faiths (as well as those of no religious persuasion), members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe in helping the poor. One way that we do this is through financial donations (where 100% of the monies go to helping the poor; the Church covers administrative costs). Mormons will also provide service hours to help compile kits and gather and sort donated clothing. The Church provides a regularly-updated list of the most-needed humanitarian items, and Church members try to respond. (This is something Mormon women are often involved with as part of our Relief Society efforts to provide help and relief to those in need. We also try to find ways to help other organizations that provide relief.)

With such contributions, anyone can help LDS Humanitarian Services to have a ready supply of the items needed in times of disaster. Then, as illustrated with the situation in Columbia, the Church works with local authorities and organizations to figure out what is needed and to distribute aid using existing channels. Local Church leaders will also often assist in organizing human and other resources to help.

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Read more about LDS Humanitarian Services at this article on our website: A Mormon Woman’s Perspective on LDS Humanitarian Services.

Read answers to Frequently Asked Questions about LDS Humanitarian Services.

The post How LDS Humanitarian Services Works appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day is working with other organizations to get relief supplies to people affected by the extensive flooding in Pakistan. The Church teamed with International Relief and Development, International Medical Corps, and Saba Aslam Welfare and Trust, and will be working in the future with Islamic Relief, USA in the next few weeks to continue to get aid to the Pakistani people.

In a recent General Conference address, President Thomas S. Monson, president of the Church,  touched on the fact that the Mormon Church’s Humanitarian program has been part of the Church’s welfare system for 25 years. As the LDS Newsroom website states: “The Church provides relief and development projects for humanitarian purposes in countries all over the world. Projects operate without regard to the nationality or religion of the recipients.” The Church covers all overhead, so 100% of donations to Humanitarian Services go directly toward relief efforts.

President Monson also remarked that it is the Church’s goal to be among the first to respond when there are emergency needs around the world. There are also other projects for sustaining health and well-being that Humanitarian Services focuses on, including clean water projects, immunization programs, wheelchair distribution, nutrition assistance, neonatal resuscitation training, and vision treatment.

For more information about LDS Humanitarian Services, or to donate (you don’t have to be LDS to contribute), see the LDS Humanitarian Services home page.

Photo from Wikipedia Commons

The post LDS Humanitarian Services assisting in Pakistan appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

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CNN iReport featured a 14-year-old’s video showing a youth group from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Miami, Florida, USA. Read the story here.

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LDS Church leaders are urging Church members to give what they can to help our brothers and sisters in Haiti. In addition to inviting us to donate monetary resources as we are able, we are reminded of the following:

Money is not the only need in Haiti. People are frightened, bewildered, and wholly uncertain about their future. In addition to what people can do in helping with food, water and shelter…[w]e invite our people everywhere to supplicate God for a spirit of calm and peace among the people as urgent aid and reconstruction efforts continue.

Let us all remember our brothers and sisters in Haiti in our prayers, as well as those who are there on the ground helping them — and those who are far away mourning with and for loved ones and friends affected by this heartbreaking disaster. And let us remember others around us who may be mourning and struggling for other reasons. There is power in prayer.

And with that, we leave you with a message about prayer. President Thomas S. Monson reminds us that “Miracles are wrought through prayer.” (Video provided in English and in Spanish.)

The post Links We Like: Helping Haiti (more help needed!); The Power of Prayer appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.