LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 29

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
as a worker-priest. He could only purchase a low-cost health insurance policy with a high deductible. In order to receive his treatments
for the spreading cancer, Soldiers of the Cross, in partnership with the
worker’s district president, was able to move funds quickly to make
sure there was no delay in receiving his critical treatment.
In many ways, as in the account above, Soldiers of the Cross is
a lifesaver!
When LCMS workers find themselves in an unexpected financial crisis, the Synod’s Soldiers of the Cross fund, made possible
by generous donors, engages the worker and his need quickly, compassionately, and confidentially. Only the worker’s district president
knows of the need, who often partners with Soldiers of the Cross to
provide the needed funds. Every need is received and given serious
consideration.
In the end, Soldiers of the Cross is an investment in the proclamation of the Gospel. For when a worker is stressed and anxious about a
pressing financial need that affects their family, the Gospel does not
have free course. Workers receiving assistance from Soldiers of the
Cross, as well as the accompanying pastoral conversation and prayer,
often comment, “Thank God! Now I can get back to my ministry
relieved from the stress of this financial need.”
In the last five years, a million dollars has been granted to Synod
workers in need. When the districts’ amount is included, the funds
with which they partner with Soldiers of the Cross to assist one of
their workers, the total granted is nearly two million dollars.
The needs are real. And Soldiers of the Cross is poised to continue engaging with workers and their respective district presidents
to address financial-crisis needs that might impede the proclamation of the Gospel.
While Concordia Plan Services (CPS) administers Veterans of the
Cross, the ONM provides the actual funds and provides pastoral care
and case management for recipients. Veterans of the Cross is a pension
supplementary program for retirees, widows, and dependent children.
In partnership with CPS, ONM provides needed supplementary services, especially identifying candidates, referring them to CPS, and
providing follow-up pastoral care and case management.
Disaster Response—Rev. Ross Johnson, Director

During the last three years, Disaster Response and the district
disaster coordinators have had the privilege of leading more than
100 different Lutheran Early Response Team (LERT) training events
throughout various districts. We also lead sectionals at numerous
church-worker conferences throughout a number of districts. To assist
in this process, we completely revised our training materials. The new
manual and accompanying DVD have been distributed to our district
disaster response coordinators to lead extra trainings in their respective districts on our behalf. The result has been the ability to train
thousands of volunteers each year instead of hundreds.
We also introduced new guides for pastors in the midst of disaster, as well as educators in the midst of disaster. These extra resources
give leaders in each congregation the tools if they would need to initiate a response in their community.
Disaster Response also continued to host yearly Disaster Response
conferences each fall. More than 100 participants attended each
one, and we were blessed with wonderful presenters and great
collaboration.
In 2014, we announced a hymn contest with the hopes of finding a new hymn for use in time of disasters. After receiving nearly
130 submissions, we discovered six wonderful hymns that we have
made available to congregations in the LCMS to use, free of charge.
The hymns have also been included in a new pastoral resource
that we have recently published. Mercy in Action: Essays on Mercy,
Human Care, and Disaster Response is available from our office,

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free of charge, and includes various essays (new and old) that can be
a great resource for pastors and congregations.
A huge need that we have seen over the past years has been care
for children after a disaster. Because of this, we also developed a
Vacation Bible School curriculum that congregations who have been
affected may use.
All of these (and more) great resources are currently available
in English. At the same time, many of these resources recently have
been translated into Spanish for use by congregations with that particular need.
In addition to these resources, we were blessed to have been
selected by the LWML national convention to partner with us in
supplying more than 20 Disaster Response trailers to partner congregations and districts. This added capacity will allow us to quickly
respond across the nation when disaster strikes.
On the response side of our ministry, we have been blessed to
have the opportunity to give guidance and capacity after dozens of
disasters across the United States. Nearly $750,000 in direct assistance (grants) was provided to congregations in the Rocky Mountain
District after catastrophic flooding.
We also provided similar capacity and guidance after flooding in
South Carolina, Florida, and the greater St. Louis area; after tornadoes
in Nebraska, South Dakota, Illinois, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi,
Missouri, and Oklahoma; and after numerous other man-made and
natural disasters. When it was deemed necessary, we visited with the
disaster sites and met with local congregation leaders to help them
develop action plans for a long-term response in their communities.
In all, we granted roughly six million dollars domestically in direct
assistance to congregations and districts. These grants helped congregations with gift cards, housing assistance, replacement of essential
items for affected families, rebuilding projects, volunteer coordination, and various other uses.
Over the next three years, we intend to continue hosting yearly
National Disaster Response conferences on disaster preparedness
with the same goal as our previous conferences. We also intended on
leading 20 LERT trainings each year, and we expect our district coordinators to lead closer to 80 additional LERT trainings each year. By
the end of the next triennium, we hope to have a total of 20,000 trained
LCMS volunteers ready to provide assistance via debris cleanup, etc.
We also remain available to teach at church-worker conferences and
in various other ways at the district level.
We are in the process of writing a devotional guide for victims
of disasters and a companion piece for the LCMS’s Pastoral Care
Companion in times of tragedy. Two additional pastoral resources
are currently in the works and are scheduled to be completed in the
fall of 2016 and 2017, respectively. These resources will help shape
our understanding of mercy in the church and will hopefully continue to provide a strong foundation for the basis of our work in time
of disaster.
Also, we will endeavor over the next three years to maintain a
quick engagement of all district and congregational partners on the
ground throughout the United States and deploy to disaster sites when
necessary. Ultimately, our ability to assist in the development and
implementation of Disaster Response plans greatly increases our
efficiency and ultimately provides for a greater stewardship of the
resources available.
Finally, we also intend to continue providing grants to congregations, districts, and recognized service organizations to help build
their capacity and effectiveness.
Church and Community Engagement—Rev. Dr. Carlos Hernandez,
Director

The Synod’s 2013 convention overwhelmingly adopted Res. 2-11
encouraging the use of Planting Gospel Seeds While Serving Human
2016 Convention Workbook