JOHN WHITMAN
Members of Bethesda UMC's Praise Band help to raise funds for tsunami relief. |
BETHESDA ? Like many churches of all denominations, Bethesda UMC responded quickly to aid the survivors of the Indian Ocean tsunami with a concert Jan. 9, featuring the church's 14-member Praise Band. A letter was read from the Elliott family, members of the church, who were in Thailand when the Dec. 26 tsunami hit, wiping out villages in 11 countries and taking more than 150,000 lives. A Sri Lankan woman spoke of her family who had survived, and family friends who had not.
The church donated the proceeds of the concert, approximately $7,000, to the United Methodist Committee on Relief. Not far away, St. Paul's UMC in Kensington raised $8,000 for UMCOR, and North Bethesda UMC collected $5,000 for UMCOR and another $1,500 for a Sri Lankan mission where a parishioner's son works, reported the Washington Post. North Bethesda plans to continue helping tsunami victims at a fund-raising concert Feb. 12. Likewise, Chevy Chase UMC raised nearly $8,000 through an appeal to its congregations, and is planning a concert Feb. 19, featuring folk singer Mack Bailey. As of Jan. 19, conference churches had contributed almost $88,000 for tsunami relief.
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