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Join us for our next Congregational Preparedness Workshop! 

Gather a team of leaders from your congregation and join us for a FREE opportunity to begin developing a preparedness plan for your congregation.

Our next workshop will be held at Pilgrim Lutheran, 1430 North Lake Drive, Lexington SC on Saturday, May 3.  We will gather beginning at 9:30 am with the workshop from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Lunch and resources will be provided. 

Register here by April 25. 

Other workshops are being planned in Upstate SC and across NC.  Please let us know if your congregation would be willing to host an event in your area!

Save the date for MESS (Mental Emotional and Spiritual Support) Training

September 8 to 10, 2025 at Lutheridge

This training course is designed for rostered ministers and others who want to know how to provide emotional and spiritual care for those impacted by disaster.  This continuing education opportunity is sponsored by ELCA Lutheran Disaster Response and will be offered at no cost.  

Mark your calendars NOW and save the dates! More information will be available soon!

2025 Congregational Preparedness Mini-Grants Awarded

Nearly 50 congregations and ministries in North and South Carolina applied for these grants to help prepare for future disasters.  ALL those who applied received a grant of up to $750 depending on their expected need. 

Projects included the purchase or updating of AEDs, new or updated first aid kits and first aid training, panic buttons for existing security systems, additional security cameras or lighting, weather alert radios, or new door locks.

Thanks to the Michael Peeler/Virginia Casey Fund in NC and the Mission Fund in SC, we were able to assist these camps and congregations with a total of $29,950 to become better prepared for the future:

A Mighty Fortress, Charlotte NC
Agape + Kure Beach Ministries, Fuquay-Varina NC
Amazing Grace, Granite Falls NC
Amazing Grace, Waxhaw NC
Bethany, Boone NC
Bethlehem, Hickory NC
Emmanuel, Lincolnton NC
Good Shepherd, Elizabeth City NC
Good Shepherd, Goldsboro NC
Kimball Memorial, Kannapolis NC
Living Saviour, Charlotte NC
Lord of Life, Garner NC
Mt. Pisgah, Hickory NC
Old St. Paul, Newton NC
Our Father, Greensboro NC
Resurrection, Kings Mountain NC
St. James, Concord NC
St. John, Cherryville NC
St. John, Concord NC
St. Luke, Lexington NC
St. Luke, Ocean Isle Beach NC
St. Mark, Asheville NC
St. Mark, China Grove NC
St. Mark, Claremont NC
St. Martin, Concord NC
St. Paul, Dallas NC
Salem, Lincolnton NC
Shepherd of the Sea, Atlantic Beach NC
Trinity, Vale NC
Bethel, White Rock SC
Christ Community, North Charleston SC
Church by the Lake, McCormick SC
Crossroads, Indian Land SC
Emmanuel, West Columbia SC
Grace, Prosperity SC
Grace, Rock Hill SC
Living Springs, Columbia SC
Mt. Horeb, Chapin SC
Pisgah, Lexington SC
Reformation, Columbia SC
Shepherd of the Sea, Murrells Inlet, SC
St. Michael, Greenville SC
St. Paul, Aiken SC
St. Thomas, Chapin SC
Summer Memorial, Newberry SC
Zion, Lexington SC

If your congregation (or camp) received a mini-grant, we hope you will share photos and stories with us about how the grant helped you be prepared to care for your congregation and community when a disaster occurs!

Bridging Together: Mennonite Disaster Service/Lutheran Disaster Response Carolinas invites you to a Resilient Bridge Building Workshop led by Johann Zimmerman from JZ Engineering.  

On Monday, March 24, 2025, the workshop, “Presentation & Demonstration of the Pile Driving Technique,” will begin at 10:00 a.m. and conclude around 11:30 a.m. with lunch. Arrive at the location—48 Stoney Creek Road, Hendersonville, NC—before 10 and look for the tent. Wear appropriate clothing for outside and a construction site.  

Attendees MUST RSVP!  

RSVP (or with questions), call, text or email: Cindy Detwiler, [email protected], 570-442-1018.  

Workshop participants are welcome to stop by and observe the various stages of the bridge building process from March 24-31. MDS leadership and volunteers will be on site to explain the process.  

Come for the Bridge Dedication/Inauguration on April 4, 2025 at 11 a.m! A light lunch will follow.  

For more information about Bridging Together, visit www.ldrcarolinas.org/bridging-together. 

Members of the network met recently and discussed a wide range of topics related to disaster preparedness and response.   Our next meeting is planned for Monday, March 31 at 7 pm.   Sign up for the network here to receive updates about the network via email!

Wildfires

We have received several questions about wildfires. Due to dry, windy conditions, plus lots of downed trees, there have been many fires burning across both states. This situation will likely improve after the recent rain.  But there is still a statewide Burn Ban in place in SC and outdoor burning is discouraged in NC.

For more information on active fires, visit these state forest service websites:

• in NC https://ncfspublic.firesponse.com/
• in SC https://scfc.firesponse.com/public/

As always, if your congregation experiences damage or needs assistance due to a disaster including wildfire, please contact one of the LDR Carolinas coordinators!

Severe Weather and Flood Preparedness Week

This week – March 2 to 8 – is Severe Weather and Flood Preparedness Week in both North and South Carolina.  Statewide Tornado Drills were scheduled on Wednesday, but have been rescheduled to Friday, March 7 because of the severe weather forecast for Wednesday.  The authorities did want there to be any confusion if there needed to be actual storm or tornado warnings at the same time.   Please take time at home, in your congregation, and workplaces to make an emergency plan for sheltering when a Tornado Warning is issued for your area. 

The new date for these drills is Friday, March 7.  The statewide drill in SC will be at 9:00 am and the drill for NC will be at 9:30 am.  These will be routine tests on NOAA Weather Radio.  If you don’t have a NOAA Weather Radio, then set an alarm on your phone and pretend that it is the test Tornado Warning for your area. When your alarm is triggered practice your tornado plan. Participating in the drill is a great way to make sure you will be ready if an actual Tornado Warning is issued for your area. Take a few minutes to learn more about Tornado Safety Plans and other severe weather precautions on these webpages:

• in NC:  https://www.weather.gov/ilm/severeweathernc
• in SC:  https://www.weather.gov/ilm/severeweathersc

Helene Recovery

There are lots of opportunities to be involved in the long-term recovery following Hurricane Helene.  Here are some suggestions:

• Contact Amy Phillips at [email protected] for more information about sending a volunteer group to Western NC or contact [email protected] for more information about helping replace private bridges.

• If you want to donate to Bridging Together, donate online or send your contribution to LDR Carolinas at 1988 Lutheran Synod Drive, Salisbury NC 28144.

• We are no longer collecting any kits or quilts, but welcome donations of gift cards to Walmart, Lowe’s, or Home Depot.   Those will be used to purchase tools and building supplies to repair homes.  Please send them to LDR Carolinas at 1988 Lutheran Synod Drive, Salisbury NC 28144.

Other

For those who want to read a firsthand account of surviving Helene, we recommend the book The Deep End of Hope in the Wake of Hurricane Helene: 40 Days and Nights of Survival and Transformation by Rev. Emma Churchman.  She and her husband live near Gerton NC, which was severely damaged by the hurricane.  This book also provides insight into providing emotional and spiritual support to disaster survivors.

The March/April/May 2025 edition of Gather, the magazine of the Women of the ELCA, includes an article about the work of Lutheran Disaster Response following Hurricane Helene.

Finally, thanks to everyone who submitted Congregational Preparedness Mini-Grants. We hope to reply to these congregations with grants to help complete these preparedness projects very soon!