FUUSN Children Raise Money for Puerto Rico!

In the wake of Hurricane Maria and in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s commitment to helping people who are poor and people of color, FUUSN Religious Education children made treats this past Sunday and sold them during coffee hour to raise money for the continued needs in Puerto Rico. The FUUSN Children raised $623.66 for Puerto Rico on Sunday, and $825 more has been committed in donations since then, for a total of $1448.66! Thank you all for your generosity!!

If anyone was not at FUUSN today and would like to make a donation, please write a check out to FUUSN and put “CRE-Puerto Rico” in the memo line or bring cash by Sunday, January 28 to either Fran or my office. I am coordinating with the minister in San Juan, PR to make the order so his volunteers will be ready for the delivery; they have requested we make a single order for ease of processing, on their end. Please let me know if you are making a donation so I can include your contribution in my order and report back to the FUUSN children.

Dear Rowan,

The government aid wasn’t that great to begin with, and now that the news cycles have moved on, there is even greater need — and will continue to exist for literally years. It looks like full electrical service will not be restored to the entire island until May or June. Unfortunately, many children will miss an entire year of school as the schools outside of San Juan will not be able to re-open either due to damage, no electricity, or no potable water. Additionally, in some communities, they are having to function as the emergency shelters for their town or village. 250,000 homes had roof damage yet the federal government has only sent 50,000 roof tarps to date. So you get the idea.

Fortunately all of our members are in a good situation, and our ministry partner, San Juan Community Library, where UUPR has met for over 20 years has been able to re-open and is in good shape. We are partnering with a local private school which is doing an incredible job of distributing relief supplies (we are a small group, so it is great to have the school to help facilitate the deliveries). And they are distributing them to the farthest isolated communities, not just the easy to reach places. To that end, we have an Amazon wish list if the children might be interested in raising some funds to help provide the supplies. And unlike a big bureaucracy, every penny will go directly to supplies, and volunteers will distribute them. If this is something you would like to participate in, here is the link to the wishlist [omitted].

There is still a need for roof tarps, mosquito nets, water purification tablets and lifestraws, and solar lamps.

Please continue to keep Puerto Rico and UUPR in your Joys and Concerns. The island will need them for quite awhile! Wishing you peace & blessings, Rev. Mark

Here’s an article and a 4-minute video Mark sent me that was on CNN yesterday: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/12/us/sutter-maria-route-puerto-rico-invs/index.html.

Here is Mark’s response:

Oh my goodness, Rowan. That is incredible! It is very moving how generous your congregation is! These supplies will bring much relief to the suffering people on the island and we are grateful for your compassion and concern.” Wishing you peace & blessings, Mark

Again, thank you for your generosity,

In faith, Rowan