Brazil Reflection

Brazil 2007

Carole Peterson

It was Monday morning and we were walking down a dirt road to our assigned building site. I was wondering, "What am I doing here? I don't know how to lay bricks. It's already hot and humid. What's it going to be like at noon, at 2:00? What difference will I make here??"

So began our week of building houses for Habitat for Humanity in Sao Leopoldo, Brazil. My questions--and doubts--were answered over the course of the week. I could lay bricks. I could build houses. And I could make a difference in people's lives. (And the heat and humidity really weren't bad.)

My son and I were part of a 14-member team who traveled to southern Brazil in March as part of the Thrivent/Habitat Lent-Build: 40 houses in 40 days project. Four of us were from Bethlehem--Carol Pfleiderer, Sharon Mason, my son Mike and me. Another two were from the Twin Cities, the rest were from across the US and Canada. Carol was our Habitat leader.

We worked for five days alongside the new homeowners and Brazilian construction workers. We moved dirt, moved and laid bricks--enough to raise the walls of three houses in a poor neighborhood of Sao Leopoldo, a city of 250,000. The houses were small--about 450 square feet--but sturdy and would replace small shacks that the residents lived in.

This was the first Habitat project in this neighborhood. Several local organizations and companies were involved with Habitat and Thrivent Financial to make the building project a reality for these hard-working families.

Our group visited Porto Alegre, a city of over one million next to Sao Leopoldo, and the island where our Lent Build was originally scheduled to be held. There, some 15,000 people live in poorer conditions than in our Sao Leopoldo neighborhood. Political issues having to do with the land postponed that project---maybe next year.

Our team members were overwhelmed by the experience of meeting and working with our hosts, including Antonio of Habitat Brasil. The food was out of this world and we had some time for sight-seeing. Building houses was important--and I proved to myself I could do it--but building relationships is as important if not more so. We were ambassadors of good will--for our church and for our country. We got to know people of another country and they us. It was very good.

"Just as you did to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me." Matthew 25:40

Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina

San Juan Bautiste

Reflections from trip participants

Marion's Story

 

When I was a child I thought that to be a missionary for the Lutheran Church would be a very difficult undertaking. You would have to learn the language and the customs of the country to which you were sent; you would then leave home for ten to twenty years, try to talk people into gathering in a small room so that you could preach to them about Jesus and Lutheranism - I never felt I'd be very good at this type of mission work. How pleased I am that today I can go on a mission trip for a few weeks at a time and do what I do best, hold babies, sweep floors, paint walls, plant flowers, paint fences, and most important of all, make friends with people of another culture, many who are already Lutheran.

The church in Comodoro is an inspiration to many of us. Here is a congregation of about twenty-five members. It has survived problems of space years without a pastor, little money, and some difficulties with the Argentine government. I feel privileged to meet and work with these generous and loving people. They come from many walks of life; Mercedes is an elementary school principal, Malena a social worker and an advocate of women's rights, Viviana, a young mother who works in a book store she and her young son live with an aunt. Eduardo is a contractor who invited us to his home for potatoes pan cakes and carne (meat). Hopefully our visits with these people will further the love of Christ among us and encourage others who don't know this love to seek its comfort at San Juan Baptista. - Marion Cunnington

Response to Middle East Violence

Visit www.elca.org/middleeast/lebanon.html on the ELCA Web site to learn how ELCA members and congregations can respond to humanitarian needs in Lebanon through ELCA International Disaster Response; for updates from companions in the region including the Lutheran church in the Holy Land, ELCA missionaries serving there, and Contact Resource Center/Lebanon; and advocacy updates.

Congregations interested in issues related to global peace will find the ELCA social statement "For Peace in God's World" (1995) to be a valuable resource for discussion.

Latest Message from Meredith

16 December 2006

Dear friends,

I imagine that many of you are spending this season of Advent decorating Christmas trees, lighting candles in your windows, and crossing your fingers for a white Christmas. Here, the days are getting longer and hotter and longer and hotter and hotter. It's a dfferent kind of "season of light," for sure! I'm still getting used to seeing Christmas trees and plastic Santa Clauses sold next to the swimsuits and beach mats in the supermarkets here.

November and the first part of December have been full of new things.

In my last email I said that I was beginning to have normal days, but I still have plenty of abnormal days, too! So I'll devote this email to some of the new things I have been experiencing and doing:

1. Turning 23 in Uruguay! I celebrated my birthday, November 11, by going to an all-night Uruguayo rock festival. It was...well, it was an all-night Uruguayo rock festival. So it was sublime, obviously.

2. Camping with the kids from La Obra (cabin-ing, actually.) We spent a weekend in November playing capture-the-flag, making sandcastles, eating snacks, singing around a campfire, and running through the woods in Colonia Valdense, Uruguay. It was a wonderful way to spend time with the kids in an informal setting, especially when we had free time at the beach. But I was exhausted afterwards!

I have renewed respect for parents, camp counselors, and elementary school teachers everywhere.

3. Learning to cook! This is the first time I've lived outside of my parents' home or a college dorm, so I'm learning all those things that 20-somethings learn after college--I just happen to be doing it in Uruguay! I eat lunch with Pastora Wilma's family every Saturday, and I'm always asking, "How do you make this? Is this easy to make? Can you teach me how to make this?" For the record, the best meal I've cooked so far was chicken with a little bit of orange and fresh vegetables fried in vinegar, salt, sugar and soy sauce. It's easy.

I'll make it for you sometime when I get home.

4. Thanksgiving in Uruguay. We six volunteers, along with our coordinator Kate Lawler and her family, spent the weekend at Centro Emmanuel, a Church-run organic farm in Colonia Valdense. Strangely enough, the cows and fields and open skies reminded many of us midwesterners of home! And the food reminded us of home, too--we cooked our own dinner of chicken (turkey's hard to come by here), mashed potatoes, vegetables (my contribution), lefsa, fruit pizza, jello, and chocolate chip cookies (also very hard to come by here).

5. New responsibility in El Cerro. I've begun leading the children's Sunday (Saturday) School classes by myself every other Saturday. This gives Pastora Wilma a little bit of time to rest, and it also gives me the opportunity to step up and get more involved in the community there. These past few weeks we've been talking about the Christmas story--what it means to "share the good news" (like the shepherds); what it means to give gifts to Jesus (like the wise men); and why it's significant that Jesus was born in a humble, simple place. We're also preparing for our Christmas pageant, which we'll be having next Saturday, December 23. We don't have enough kids to cover all the parts, so I get to be in the pageant, too. I'm Joseph.

6. Making Christmas cookies with Casa Joven (food seems to be a theme of this email...). All of the teenagers are currently involved in projects related to Christmas--some are making picture frames, others are making small gifts, and a third group is baking cookies for our Christmas party this Friday. I've learned how to make ojos (literally "eyes"), a delicious cookie with a jelly-like center, and alfajores, the popular cookie sandwiches sold everywhere in Uruguay and Argentina. This Tuesday I'm leading the group in making chocolate chip cookies.

7. Friends! It's hard to make friends in a country where I don't know many people my own age, not to mention the added difficulty of dealing with a language barrier. Sometimes I think that there's no way I would want to talk to me in Spanish. But I'm slowly and surely meeting people, and a few weeks ago I experienced Montevideo night life for the first time, something my co-workers had been insisting that I do. The next time I meet a foreigner in Minnesota I'll jump at the chance to invite him or her over for dinner, because now I know how much that kind of thing means to someone living in a new place.

There are a million more new things that I could write about, but hopefully this gives you a little taste of what I've been doing these past six weeks. People here keep asking me if I'm homesick because it's almost Christmas, but the change of seasons keeps me from feeling too homesick. It's like you and I are separated not only by miles and kilometers, but by months as well--I'm not homesick for Christmas in Minnesota because it doesn't feel like Christmas in Minnesota here.

It feels like Christmas in Uruguay. And how could I not enjoy that??

I'll write again soon to let you know how the Christmas pageant went and what we did to celebrate Christmas and New Year's.

Thanks to all of you who have been writing to me! Take care, and have a very Merry Christmas!
Love, Meredith

2 November 2006

Hello friends,

The last time I wrote to you, I had so many new things to share! I had been in Uruguay for only 2 weeks, and everything seemed different and exciting and significant. Now, as I sit down to write this second newsletter, I can think of hundreds more new and exciting and significant things to share with you. I've still been here only 8 weeks. But as I settle into a routine I find myself trading in all my initial bright reactions--surprise! joy! loneliness! fear! amazement!--for quieter, more pastel versions of themselves. I'm beginning to have days that feel normal.

A normal day for me begins with a breakfast of tea, toast, and jam. I always eat with my host grandfather, who is the president of Nuestro Salvador. Then I take 2 buses to work--the 105 and the 328--and make sure to leave my house about 90 minutes before I have to be at work.

I get to see a lot of the city from the window of a bus. When I get to work, I sit around a table at La Obra and drink mate with the teachers while we wait for the kids to arrive. I love hearing the kids come in and pound on the windows and call to each other and greet me in beginning English ("Hellohowareyou?"). It's like hearing a city wake up after watching a peaceful sunrise. And at the end of the day I love walking along the road between La Obra and the bus stop, knowing that I will see the same things I see every day: two horses grazing in the yard next door, a small shop selling cigarettes and hamburgers, and the sun setting behind a torn-up field where a crowd of boys and a few lone girls play soccer all day.

The actual work that I do at La Obra varies from day to day. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I help out in a program called Centro de Estudios in the morning and a program called Casa Joven in the afternoon. Centro de Estudios is a program that offers academic support and homework help for kids in junior high and high school. I get to help kids with English assignments like naming all the parts of the body, describing a family member, or writing about plans for the summer. Casa Joven is a program that offers vocational training for high school age kids who aren't part of the traditional education system. One of the coolest projects they have is a peluqueria (hair salon) in which the kids learn to cut hair and then offer free clinics for people in the community. I am in no way qualified to cut hair, much less teach anyone else how to cut hair, but I try to be as helpful as I can. I've gotten pretty good at washing hair without letting all the shampoo run into the clienteles' eyes. This is trickier than you may think.

On Wednesday and Friday afternoons I help in Club de Ninos, a program for kids ages 6-12. We play soccer, make kites, play with play dough, and go for walks through the neighborhood. I also teach English lessons every Friday, and I love trying to think of creative ways to engage the kids. So far my most successful lessons have been teaching the song "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands" and making pop-up books about the zoo to learn the names of animals in English.

My least successful lesson, in case you were wondering, ended with 2 students getting into a fight while the other 3 threw a soccer ball at one anothers' heads. I try to focus on the singing and pop-up books, though. :)

I spend Saturdays working with Pastora Wilma Rommel, the pastor of Montevideo's Lutheran Church (Nuestro Salvador). We go to El Cerro, a low-income part of Montevideo where Pastora Wilma teaches catechism classes to kids and then works with their mothers, many of whom come from difficult or violent homes. The classes are held in a private home, so the kids can play outside in the yard while their mothers meet with Pastora Wilma. The whole program has an incredible grassroots feel. I really admire the work Pastora Wilma does there--she really embraces the idea of "accompaniment" and meeting people where they are (literally or figuratively) and figuring out what they need or want her to do to help. And I love her theology, too. As an example:  a few weeks ago one of the women in El Cerro made a cake for us, but we didn't eat all of it. So Pastora Wilma used the leftovers for Communion the next day. I thought the symbolism of that was so beautiful--like, what could be more holy than a cake made by a woman in a low-income community and offered to you as a guest in her home?

One of the things that I like about my work is that I see so many direct examples of people serving other people:  the teenagers in Casa Joven washing one another's hair; the cooks at La Obra dishing bowls of rice and pasta; the woman in El Cerro opening her home for our meetings. It makes me think about things that I can do to serve the people around me, even when those things are very small--things like cleaning up crayons and stacking chairs and giving up my seat on the bus.

I've recently realized that another important part of my service is listening to people talk about the war in Iraq. I can't tell you how many people have asked me about it, from taxi drivers to members of Nuestro Salvador to fruit vendors to a Canadian backpacker I met in Buenos Aires. For awhile, I found myself getting frustrated at the tone of some of their questions. I felt guilty, I felt attacked, and I felt helpless. But the other night I had an experience that helped me gain a new perspective on my role as an American. It was late at night, and I was taking a taxi home after having been in Buenos Aires for a reunion with the other volunteers. I was already exhausted, and then the taxi driver began asking me about Iraq. As he launched into his reasons for not wanting to ever visit the U.S., I suddenly realized that what mattered most was not how I responded to his questions, but simply that I was there and listening and acknowledging that his opinion is important and valid. I think part of my responsibility as an American living abroad is to listen to the voices of people our government doesn't listen to. Some things I can change; some things I can't. But the least I can do is give the people I meet a chance to tell an American what they think of America.

As always, there's a lot more that I could tell you about my daily experiences and the things I think about and the people I meet. But I know this email is getting long, and I would rather leave you wanting more than thinking "Is she finally done??" So, that's all for now. Thanks to all of you who responded to my last newsletter and have been thinking about me and praying for me. It's wonderful to hear from you!

Take care,

Meredith

P.S. Pictures are coming very, very soon. I promise.

22 September 2006  

Dear friends,

Hello from Uruguay!  I'm writing to you from a "cyber," which is what Uruguayos call internet cafes. Spring is in the air!  I'm wearing a t-shirt without a fleece for the first time today, and I can see beautiful green birds flying from tree to tree down the street.

It took me several weeks to actually get to Uruguay, but the journey was lovely. I left home on August 20 and spent a week in Chicago for the Young Adults in Global Mission orientation. There, I met up with about 35 other youth volunteers from the ELCA and about 35 more from the Presbyterian Church of America.  My fellow ELCA volunteers are serving in Mexico, Kenya, Slovakia, India, Germany, the Philippines, the UK, and of course Argentina/Uruguay! We spent the week worshipping together, eating together, sharing our faith stories together, and attending lectures on everything from globalization to the ELCA's model of accompaniment to why we are discouraged from adopting babies during our year of service (okay, that last one was only part of the general policies and procedures lecture, but it was my favorite part).

On August 28, I left for Buenos Aires with five volunteers who are serving in Argentina-Stacey, Justin, Rachel, Carrie, and Lesley. We had to spent a night in D.C. due to weather delays in Chicago, but we finally arrived in Buenos Aires on the morning of August 30.  Our country coordinator, Kate Lawler, and her husband, David Wunsch (who is also an ELCA regional representative), met us at the airport. They are amazing!! None of us can get over how incredibly organized, thoughtful, and kind they have been throughout our first few weeks.

We spent our week in Buenos Aires sharing more worship, food, and faith stories. We also attended some incredible lectures and events. I learned and saw and felt so much! I learned about the debt that Argentina is still paying off from the time of the dictatorship. I saw many faces of Argentina, including those of tango dancers and AIDS patients and Las Madres de la Plaza del Mayo whose sons were among the disappeared during the dictatorship. And I felt excited to explore a new city, touched by our meeting with Las Madres, and inspired by the way that many of our speakers practice Christianity. The highlight of the week, for me, was meeting with Pastor Lisandro Orlov, who spoke about the role of Christianity in today's world. He said that our identity as a religion must be found in the unconditional love of God, and that the sign of the real Church is when others say, "Look how they love each other!" When we draw a line between "us" and "them," he said, Jesus is always on the other side. Amen. Another bright spot of the week was meeting with Pastor Judy VonOsdel-Hansen, who is partially sponsored by my home congregation, Bethlehem. She spoke to us about feminist theology and learning to make visible that which has been made invisible (e.g. women in the Bible or oppressed people today). One thing she said that really stuck with me is that the Gospel is, by definition, good news. It HAS to be good news! So if all we find in the Bible is judgment and exclusion, maybe we haven't found the good news yet.

I finally arrived in Montevideo on Thursday, September 7. It was late at night when I arrived, and my initial impression was that of a city filled with palm trees and horses and carts. Since then, I have had the opportunity to form many more impressions. There certainly are a lot of palm trees and horses and carts (as well as cars and buses). There's also a lot of mate, which is the traditional bitter tea that Uruguayos drink from gourds. I'm learning to like it, but I´ll admit that I prefer it the Argentine way, with sugar (shh, don't tell!). There's also a lot more poverty than a person might realize if he or she came just to go to one of Uruguay's popular beaches. Parts of Montevideo are very beautiful, with charming panaderias (bakeries) and cute houses and clean streets. But other parts of Montevideo, like the neighborhoods I work in, are very poor.

One of the neighborhoods I work in is called Barrio Borro. I´m serving at La Obra Ecumenica Barrio Borro, which is like a school/community center for kids and youth in the neighborhood.  I'll write more about the specific programs offered at La Obra in a future newsletter, but for now I'll just say that I have been dividing my time between a group of 6-12 year-olds (helping with math homework, teaching English, playing games, doing crafts, etc.) and an older group of teenagers (again, helping with homework, teaching English, and assisting as they learn vocational skills).  Although, honestly, I have been doing a lot more learning than I have been teaching so far. I´m learning to speak Spanish the way Uruguayos do, which is not necessarily the same as textbook Spanish. I´m learning to be patient. I´m learning the way things are done in this country, this city, this barrio. And I´m very grateful to all my co-workers who have been teaching me things like which bus to take to work, how to conjugate new verbs, and what to do when a 9-year-old cuts her lip at the same time as two other 9-year-olds are on the verge of punching each other (though I´m still not sure I´ve got that last one down).

The other site where I´m serving is in a different low-income area of Montevideo, called El Cerro. The pastor of my Church here, Pastora Wilma Rommel, offers Bible studies for children and women in a private home on Saturday afternoons. Pastora Wilma is at a conference in Europe right now, so I have been able to visit that site only once so far. The Saturday that I went, we sang hymns and talked to the kids about the Lord's Prayer (Padre Nuestro) and what different parts of it mean. The whole program has a really interesting grassroots feel, since we work with a small group of families out of a private home. I will write more about that site, as well as my Church, Nuestro Salvador, in a future email. I want to wait until Pastora Wilma returns to describe it, though, because things have not really been "normal" in her absence.

There's so much more I could write about, but this newsletter has gone on long enough already! So I´ll just end by saying thank you to all of you who have written to me or told me you would be thinking of me. I've been thinking and feeling so many things in these past few weeks, and it's wonderful to know that other people are interested in sharing those thoughts and feelings with me.   The type of Spanish spoken in Uruguay and Argentina is influenced by Italian, so most Uruguayos end conversations by saying "ciao!"  I´ve also seen it written "chao." So, ciao, chao, friends! Take care. I'll write more soon.  

Meredith

Local

ASK (Adults Saving Kids)
1901 Portland Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55404
(612) 872-0684 http://www.adultssavingkids.org Contact: Amy Hartman
Programs to prevent exploitation of youth by the sex industry. Office help, website assistance, educational material development, teaching youth, outreach.

Community Emergency Services
1900 11th Ave. S. Minneapolis, MN 55404
(612) 870-1125 http://www.sf.org/c/ces
Contact: Jeff Noyed
Bringing the whole Gospel to the whole person to meet physical, spiritual & emotional needs. Interview clients for foodshelf eligibility; office assistance; maintenance duties; driving clients; financial help.

Ebenezer
Sally Newburry, 612-872-8515 or snewbur1@fairview.org
Basic maintenance, fixing & cleaning wheelchairs at care center. Mending/sewing clothing for residents at care center. Provide hands-on assistance in feeding residents in the dementia area. Deliver meals on wheels Fridays (12-1pm) in a senior apt. bldg.
Frequency: One time or ongoing 
Group size: Individual, couple, or small group

English Learning Center
Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church
2315 Chicago Ave. S. Minneapolis, MN 55404  
Contact: Claudia Holt, 612-874-9963 or claudia@englishlc.org
Six levels of instruction in English, math, and computer skills. Conduct ESL classes; tutor once weekly.

Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery
5400 Glenwood Ave Golden Valley, MN 55422
(763) 591-0100 http://www.crisisnursery.org/
Contact: Kathleen Manning
Help prevent child neglect and abuse. Provide emergency daycare, strengthen families. Work with children; office work; cook meals for kids; group projects; advocacy.

Habitat for Humanity
3001 4th St. SE Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 331-4090 http://www.tchabitat.org/
Contact: Rick Jackson Eliminate poverty housing by providing decent, affordable housing for all. 1-5 day opportunities each summer; Tuesdays crew with other South Minneapolis churches.

Hospitality Center for Chinese
1407 Cleveland Ave. N. St. Paul, MN 55108
(952) 890-5273
Contact: Ellen Erdahl
Through hospitality, introduce Chinese students and families to Christianity. Provide ESL, reading classes and mentorships. Assist with food donations and serving; hosting students in home; host family outings; conduct Bible studies and ESL classes.

Journey Homes - LSS Metro Housing
2414 Park Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55404 
http://www.lssmn.org/
Contact: Nancy Urbanski, Nancy.Urbanski@lssmn.org Prevent & end homelessness. Family support assistant, mentorship, community research, activity leaders, repair persons, movers.

Kinship of Greater Minneapolis
3210 Oliver Ave. N Minneapolis, MN 55412
(612) 588-4655 or (612) 722-1621 http://www.kinship.org/
Contact: Darcy Burke Christian-based mentoring program for children ages 5 to 15, matching individuals, couples, or families as mentors. Volunteers needed to befriend a child one hour per week for minimum commitment of one year.

Loaves & Fishes
1917 Logan Ave. S Minneapolis, MN 55403 (612) 377-9810
Contact: Dean Weigel
Provides groceries and support to people in crisis. Financial donations, volunteers to cook and serve meals.

Luther Seminary
2481 Como Ave. St. Paul, MN 55108
(651) 641-3456 http://www.luthersem.edu/
Contact: Kathy Hanson
Prepares leaders for Christian communities, both professional ministers/pastors and lay individuals. Host families for international students; mentors to students.

MICAH
122 W. Franklin Ave Minneapolis, MN 55404 (612) 871-8980 http://www.micah.org/
Contact: Renee Lundgren
Mobilize congregations and people of faith to ensure safe, decent, affordable housing for all. Develop networks within congregations to advocate for affordable housing at local, regional and state level.

Our Saviour's Housing
2219 Chicago Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55404
(612) 872-4193 ext. 25. Contact: Mary Ellen Skan. Serving the needs of the homeless. Shelter aids - two nights a month, must be an adult; youth groups, assistance with one-time projects. Breakfast servers and lunch makers needed.  

Plymouth Christian Youth Center
2301 Oliver Ave. N. Minneapolis, MN 55412
(612) 522-6501 http://www.pcyc-mpls.org/ Contact: Carl Griffin
Serves North Minneapolis youth and families through education, youth and family development and community development programs.

Redeemer Lutheran Church
1800 Glenwood Ave N Minneapolis, MN 55406
(612) 374-4139 x.16 http://www.redeemermpls.org Contact: Babette Chapman. Offers after-school program in safe, Christian environment. Volunteers for creative arts, sewing, reading, tutoring students grades l-8; computer assistance.

Simpson Housing Services
2100 Pillsbury Avenue S. Minneapolis, MN 55404 (612) 874-8683
Contact: Christina Giese
Emergency shelter; transitional housing for families working toward permanent housing. Overnight shelter volunteers; renovation projects; financial support.

TRUST
9 West Rustic Lodge Minneapolis, MN 55409 http://www.trustinc.org/
Contact: Nancy Biele (612) 827-6159
Meals on Wheels--deliver noon meals to seniors and persons with disabilities. Chore Program--helping seniors stay in their homes by providing help with household chores and maintenance.

Wellness Connection of Minnesota 
710 East 24th St. #206
Minneapolis, MN 55404 (612) 879-8730
Contact: Lynnea Forness, lmforness@qwestoffice.net Working with the Somali immigrant community to increase the quality of health and wellness for individuals and their families.

ZOOM House
3244 Blaisdell Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 825-2825 Contact: Kathy Nelson
Provides transitional housing for homeless & low-income people; encourages education, neighborhood involvement.

National

ASK (Adults Saving Kids)
1901 Portland Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55404
(612) 872-0684 http://www.adultssavingkids.org Contact: Amy Hartman
Programs to prevent exploitation of youth by the sex industry. Office help, website assistance, educational material development, teaching youth, outreach.

Bethphage
Linn Center, Suite B 4980 S. 118th St. Omaha, NE 68137 (800) 279-1234 http://www.bethphage.org Contacts: Neal and Jerry Pearson, Delores Anderson Affiliate of the ELCA, serves and advocates for people with disabilities so they may achieve their full potential. Prayer & financial assistance.

MICAH
122 W. Franklin Ave Minneapolis, MN 55404 (612) 871-8980 http://www.micah.org
Contact: enee Lundgren
Mobilize congregations and people of faith to ensure safe, decent, affordable housing for all. Develop networks within congregations to advocate for affordable housing at local, regional and state level.

International

Bread for the World
122 Franklin Ave. W #610 Minneapolis, MN 55404 (763) 424-0733 breadmn@igc.apc.org
Contact: Ed Payne
National Christian citizens' movement seeks justice for the world's hungry by lobbying our nation's decision makers.

Global Health Ministries
7831 Hickory St. NE Fridley, MN 55432
(763) 586-9590 http://www.ghm.org
Contact: Tim Iverson
Support Lutheran health care world-wide. Volunteer in health field in another country; roll bandages, sort supplies, pack containers; contribute supplies or financially.  

Lutheran HealthCare Bangladesh
7831 N. Hickory St. Fridley, MN 55432
(763) 571-3968 or (763) 542-9003 http://www.lhcb.org
Contact: Georgia Johnson
Provide health care and development to women and community development programs. Short or long-term missionary opportunities in health care and ESL; financial support.

Lutheran Partners in Global Ministry
122 W. Franklin Ave. Suite 518B Minneapolis, MN 55409 (612) 823-5058 http://www.lutheranpartners.org office@lutheranpartners.org Contact: Betty and Gordon Olson; Connect with people around the world in a partnership of caring for one another. Contribute for projects; support a child in boarding schools in India; LPGM office work; mission trip volunteers.

LWF Coffee Project—Equal Exchange
http://www.lwr.org
Help farmers overseas earn a fairer share of income from their crop and gain a business partner they can trust. Coffee available for sale at Mission Fair and elsewhere.

World Mission Prayer League
232 Clifton Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55403 (612) 871-6843 http://www.wmpl.org
Contact: Deb Ringblom Lutheran prayer fellowship and missionary sending agency. Volunteers needed to finish the interior of the mission home at 232 Clifton Ave. Skilled and unskilled labor welcome.