Helping members in Mozambique

Tim Maguire, the national director of GCI in South Africa, recently requested funds from the GCI Disaster Relief Fund to assist GCI members in Mozambique and surrounding areas. Tim wrote this:

I spent nearly two weeks in Mozambique in early January. It rained for most of the time that I was there and the ground was becoming water logged. On returning home, I heard that very heavy rains started falling in Mozambique’s northern provinces on January 16. Torrential rains continued for about five days causing major flooding throughout the northern province of Zambezi, as well as in Malawi. Of the 103 GCI congregations that we have in Mozambique, 43 are situated in areas directly affected by the flooding of the Zambezi and Chirre Rivers. All our members are subsistence farmers who eke out an existence from the land, growing mainly maize (corn), which they grind into a flour and cook into a thick porridge. This is the staple diet of most Africans. These crops have now been destroyed by the flooding and our members face starvation.

GCI Treasurer Mat Morgan announced that the GCI Home Office in Glendora responded quickly as did GCI’s Canadian Office. We are sending $25,000 from the US to buy food and other emergency supplies to help our members avoid starvation while they regroup. We are able to respond in this way because GCI congregations in the US have previously donated money to the GCI Disaster Relief Fund. Here is a note from Mat:

On behalf of Tim Maguire and hundreds of our brothers and sisters in Mozambique who will enjoy a meal as a result of your generosity in donating to the GCI Disaster Relief Fund, thank you! Probably the best way to assist members suffering in disasters like these in Africa is to donate to the Fund, which provides members in disaster areas with emergency needs for food, water, medicine, clothing, temporary housing, home and/or church hall repairs, temporary local pastoral salary expenses, etc. Monies donated to the Fund that are not immediately needed remain in the Fund to be allocated in future disasters.

Congregations can donate to the Fund by having their treasurer set up a one time or monthly donation using the GCI online system (http://online.gci.org—log in and select “Church Giving” under the “Treasurer” tab at left). A congregation or individual may donate to the Fund by check made payable to Grace Communion International, indicating on the memo line that it is for the GCI Disaster Relief Fund. Send checks to:

GCI Disaster Relief Fund
Grace Communion International
P.O Box 5005
Glendora, CA 91740-0730