Flooding in St. Louis

Our hearts ache for those affected by the flooding in St. Louis. We pray that God's safety, care, and healing be in their midst and that the communities will come together in response to the flooding. 


Many families have been displaced by the flooding and it has affected many more. UMCOR is responding with Cleaning Kits (flood buckets) and Emergency Response Teams (ERTs) have been dispatched. 


You can help now by giving to Midwest Mission so we can purchase supplies that are being requested by the CDRCs (Conference Disaster Relief Coordinators). Click here to give directly to Midwest Mission or send your check to IGRC and put the Midwest Mission advance special #6620 in the memo line. Go to Five Star Booklet/Advance Specials (igrc.org) to learn more.


If you would like to build an UMCOR Cleaning Kit, instructions are here. You can send completed kits to Midwest Mission or your closest UMCOR Cooperating Depot. Find list here. 


Thank you for all of your prayers and contributions. We will keep you all updated as the situation progresses. 

ERT's have been called to St. Louis!

What does that mean for you?


If you are an ERT certified team, let Curt Franklin at cfranklin@igrc.org know if they deploy, and he will work with them to get a list of places needing help. With the storms that went through the St. Louis area it has left a lot of people in the Metro East area with a mess. Currently, there are about 40 - 50 homes with significant damage and over 300 with some damage.


If you are an ERT certified individual wanting to help, Curt Franklin at cfranklin@igrc.org can collect names to put a team together or invite you to join another team. We will have a team on site as early as Saturday, and we anticipate recovery will be ongoing for a while.


If you are not currently certified, please do NOT self-deploy. Thank you for your willing spirit, we value that so much! One of the most important parts of disaster response, however, is making sure that we are helping to calm the chaos, not contributing to it. When crisis happens, it is very difficult for those affected to deal with any more than the most basic of logistics, so we need to only deploy people who are fully trained and accounted for in the system.


If you would still like to help, there may be a possibility in the near future. Please get in touch with Curt Franklin at cfranklin@igrc.org, and he will work with you on how to help. We encourage you to get certified or recertified so we can work together at the next disaster! See more information below.


Anyone can help with the most important part of this process - prayer. Please continue to be in earnest prayer for all those affected by the flooding and pray that God's safety be with all those responding to the need of His children in St. Louis.

Early Response Team (ERT) Training and Recertification

Early Response Team (ERT) Training and Recertification equips individuals and teams to respond in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. The cost for this training is $25 per participant and $10 for recertification. At the training, participants will receive an ERT Training Manual (digital copy), and upon completing the course will receive a UMCOR ID Badge and a conference ERT T-shirt. You must be 18 years or older to get the UMCOR badge. For the Recertification training, you needed to have been badged in 2019. A UMCOR background check is required before receiving badges. There is limited space, so register soon. If there is a need for additional classes, we will consider that. 


Upcoming 2022 Trainings:


ERT Basic Training - To register, please click on the appropriate date:        

        September 24, 2022 from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm at East Bay Camp

ERT Recertification Online Training - To register, please click on the appropriate date:

          October 17 & 18, 2022 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm each evening

Connecting Neighbors

Connecting Neighbors is a 3-module online training that helps to empower people with the knowledge of their strength together both as a local community and as the wider United Methodist Church. Connecting Neighbors equips them to be ready to act before and in the wake of disaster.


Module 1: Ready Congregants focuses on preparing individuals and families to be disaster-ready and inspire them to act before and immediately following a disaster.


Module 2: Ready Churches emphasizes the importance of protecting church property and the people within the property before and immediately following a disaster and the appropriate use of church property in disaster response.


Module 3: Ready Response encourages churches to explore their capacities for various disaster response ministries and to consider ways to engage community partners.



Connecting Neighbors Online Training - To register, please click on the appropriate date:

  November 14 & 15, 2022 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm each evening