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General Assembly Council Votes Not to Incorporate Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
Louisville, April 25, 2008 — The General Assembly Council unanimously voted not to incorporate Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. This vote was the result of a report and recommendation of the Task Force to Incorporate PDA that was presented to the GAC earlier in the week. The Council further charged the task force to complete its work by September, 2009, addressing the three remaining items:
- Address the communication and interpretation issues discovered in the work of the Task Force.
- Address the Human Resources concerns relative to quick and efficient hiring of staff and “on the ground” personnel in response to a disaster.
- Work with all those who feel passionately that incorporation is the best way to carry out the ministry of PDA in order to strengthen those relationships and to strengthen PDA’s capacity to respond efficiently to disasters as well as to carry out its overall mission.
GAC chair Allison Seed commented, “The Task Force made a very thorough case for not moving forward with incorporation. We appreciate their work. At the same time we understand that some in the church may be frustrated with this decision and we will make every attempt to work with them to help them understand and hopefully support this decision and the continued good work of PDA.”
The recommendation not to incorporate was initially made in the opening plenary session of the GAC on Wednesday this week. Council members discussed the recommendation in their committee meetings on Thursday and brought the issue back to plenary for a vote at its closing meeting this morning. In making the recommendation, Task Force Vice-Chair Karl Travis stated, “We have an excellent infrastructure for this ministry already in place through PDA. The belief of the Task Force is that incorporation will not guarantee an improvement in this ministry.” |
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