UMCOR Sunday is March 19

February 23, 2023 | by Steve Elliott

UMCOR Sunday is an opportunity to celebrate and support the missions and outreach of the United Methodist Church.  This special offering is how UMCOR funds their core operations.  That way, when we give to a specific need, such as the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, 100% goes directly to that need.  None of those donations go to operate UMCOR.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief, known as UMCOR, is the humanitarian aid and development arm of our denomination.  It operates in four major areas:

-    Relief, such as emergency food and supplies in times of famine, drought, and geopolitical crisis.
-    Disaster Response, immediate and long-term support for natural disasters.
-    Sustainable Development, programs focused on areas such as clean water, sanitation, food security, climate change and global migration.
-    And Global Health, education, and programs for priorities such as eliminating malaria.

Examples of UMCOR’s impact this past year include:
-    Relief work in the Ukraine
-    Disaster responses in Tonga and Haiti
-    Recovery from Hurricane Ian in Florida
-    Tornado recoveries in the Southern States
-    Refugee resettlement

Closer to home, we are grateful for UMCOR’s commitment to addressing the legacy of California wildfires.  Since 2017, UMCOR has provided $1.7 million dollars for wildfire recovery.  They just sent a $10,000 grant in January to help Central Valley flooding survivors.  Much of this funding is then matched by our Conference Disaster Response Fund.

Acknowledging the impact UMCOR has, California-Nevada churches donated $628,000 to UMCOR in 2022.  All of this went directly to US and International programs.  What an amazing commitment to the difference UMCOR has in our world!