Voices from the Gulf Coast featured in General Board’s first webcast.

The new Church of the Brethren webcast series has posted a disaster response report from the Gulf Coast, as its second bi-weekly offering. This marks the inaugural webcast of the Church of the Brethren General Board.

Brethren members and others are invited to listen in as the Executive Committee of the board visits Brethren Disaster Response and Disaster Child Care projects in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida in a three-day whirlwind tour. "Find out what stirrings God created in the souls of these Brethren as they traveled," invites Becky Ullom, director of Identity and Relations, who produced and narrated the documentary webcast.

The experience began in New Orleans and the surround area, where the committee gained a deeper understanding of the trials and triumphs related to Hurricane Katrina recovery. With a stop at a house dedication in Mississippi, the group ended the trip in Pensacola, Fla., where recovery efforts related to Hurricanes Ivan and Andrew are nearly complete.

Throughout these experiences, several questions remained for the group. How is God calling the Church of the Brethren to be involved in helping our brothers and sisters recover from disasters? How is God calling us to respond, especially in the New Orleans area?

Members of the General Board’s Executive Committee include chair Jeff Neuman-Lee, vice-chair Tim Harvey, Dale Minnich, Vickie Whitacre Samland, Ken Wenger, and Angela Lahman Yoder. Roy Winter, director of Emergency Response, Zach Wolgemuth, assistant director of Emergency Response, and Ullom accompanied the group.

The webcast series is available to hear or download at www.cobwebcast.bethanyseminary.edu. For more information contact Enten Eller at Bethany Seminary, 800-287-8822 ext. 1831 or Enten@bethanyseminary.edu.

Source: 3/9/2007 Newsline Extra