Hurricane Felix

Dear Friends and Family,
Many of you have written notes in the past couple days, asking about the hurricane and sending along thoughts and prayers. Thank you! We are fine--not even very wet. However, there has been significant damage and loss on the north-eastern side of Nicaragua. We wanted to let you know how you can support Nicaragua during this time. The East Coast of Nicaragua (see map at the bottom of the page) is separated from the West Coast by mountains, rivers, rain forest, and a network of impassable roads. In other words, it's difficult to get there even in the best of situations. Communication systems and infrastructure have been hit hard, especially in the communities in and around Puerto Cabezas. For example, even after three days, no one has been able to have any communication with the Brethren in Christ churches on the Atlantic Coast to see what their needs are. Currently, the only ways of getting relief aid into the region are by air and boat, which is expensive. What $100 of relief and development money would do on the Pacific Coast, takes $500 on the Carribean side. MCC and other NGOs down here (especially Acción Medica Cristiana, our primary partner in this situation) have a good network for collecting and distributing funds. If you or your churches would like to donate to the Hurricane Relief effort, you can do so through MCC online, by phone, or by mail. This information, as well as a brief article, is at http://www.mcc.org/news/news/article.html?id=239.
Also, you can read an article from the LA Times here: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-felix7sep07,1,5407673.story?coll=la-headlines-world

Thanks for your support! Love, Beth and Alan