People suffer emotional and spiritual losses as well. Victims grieve the losses of lives and property. They are left with the impression that they are vulnerable and no longer in control of their lives. Disasters even cause people to question the existence and the goodness of God. Some victims feel deserted by neighbors, family, and God.

It is into this bleak picture of human suffering that people of faith are called to come offering a cool drink of water, a healing hand, a listening ear, and the good news of God's love. It is in the midst of disaster that God's presence can offer the most reassurance and healing. We go into the rubble of human existence: to be God's ambassadors, bringing the gift of new life.

This resource is designed to help young people become prepared to help in the case of disaster. However, in many ways the idea of becoming prepared to respond to disaster is misleading because when a disaster occurs, no one is really prepared for it. Disaster, by its very nature, contains the element of surprise. However, by learning about different kinds of disasters, by studying people's responses to disasters, by learning new ways of listening to the needs of others, and by learning to place our trust in God, we can all become friends to people in need.

This resource contains five modules or session plans, each devoted to a different aspect of preparing for disaster response. The modules are meant to be used in sequence. Each module will take approximately one hour. Optional additional activities are included to al low you to adapt the material to fit into a longer time frame.

Who Will Use This Resource?

Many young people feel a strong need to put their faith into action by doing something significant to help others in need. Summer work camps and mission trips are popular activities with groups of Christian teenagers. They provide participants with opportunities to grow in their faith, to do something significant for others, to gain understanding and concern for the needs of others, and to find community with other Christian young people and adults.

In order to become effective helpers in the midst of a disaster, young people need to be prepared. This resource will help young people plan for a work camp or mission trip in an area where disaster has struck or to become prepared to deal with potential disasters right in their own community. The material is designed to be used with groups of older youth or college students. It can be adapted for use with younger youth or even adults.

The modules can be used in Sunday School classes, youth fellowship programs, camps, conferences or interdenominational groups of young people. You can choose to use all five modules together as the program for a weekend retreat.

Your Group

You may be working with an already-formed and established group such as a church youth fellowship group or Sunday School class. You may find however. that the nature of this material lends itself to use by groups of teens brought together by a common concern for disaster victims. The group may involve youth from different churches and even different denominations. This is a good opportunity to invite unchurched youth who are looking for a meaningful way to make a difference in the world. In any case it will be important to find ways to help your group grow to know and to trust each other well so that they can work together comfortably.

Group Size

Most of the activities in this resource assume that you are working with a group of 10-30 young people. Suggestions are made at times to divide the group into smaller clusters to allow for more participation in the discussions. If you have a youth group of fewer than ten members, you may want to consider doing most of the activities as a whole group. Those leaders of very large youth groups may want to use the small group approach even more frequently than called for in the session plans.

When small group discussion is; going on, it Is Important for everyone to understand the following guidelines:

1. Give everyone an opportunity to speak.
   
2. Listen carefully when others are speaking.
   
3. Be supportive and ask questions.

Generally it is a good idea to assign participants to small groups at first until they are accustomed to this way of working so that no one feels left out by not being chosen for a group and so that the youth are encouraged to spend time with new people. There are a number of creative ways of dividing people into groups such as:

• Those with summer birthdays (autumn. winter, spring) meet together
  Place colored dots or stickers on name tags. Have people meet with others who have the same color.
• Pass out folded slips of paper with numbers or words on them. Have people find the others who have the same number or word.
• Give each person a puzzle piece. Have people wordlessly try to find the others whose pieces fit their own. These people make a group.

Group Building

To be effective in the field of disaster response, your young people will need to become comfortable working together as a team. There are activities in each module designed to help build community. As group leaders you will want to be sensitive to the importance of each person feeling a part of the group. Please allow adequate time for participation in and debriefing of group-building activities.

Activity Guide

An Activity Guide accompanies this resource. It is suggested that you provide one copy of the Activity Guide for each participant in the program.

Journals

You may choose to ask participants to keep joumalr of their cxpcnences of working together on this group study. Explain that a journal is a private record of thoughts, feelings, reactions, and ideas. It can include poetry, prayers, and sketches. Tn some of the modules, you will find suggested ideas for subjects to include in the journals. Participants will want to keep their journals with them if they go on a work camp or mission trip to record their experiences.

Those who helped design this resources are:

Marilyn Berry, Vista Presbyterian Church, Vista, CA
Larry Castillo-Wilson, Grace United Methodist Church, El Paso, TX
Joyce Favors, St. Mark United Methodist Church, Chicago, IL
Stan Hankins, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Louisville, KY
Virginia Miller, United Methodist Committee on Relief, Knoxville, TN
Daniel Rift, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Louisville, KY
Lydia Walker, Cooperative Disaster Child Care, New Windsor, MD
Lydia H. Walker is a licensed professional counselor and the national director of Cooperative Disaster Child Care in New Windsor, Maryland.
Vera K. White is a wnter and Christian educator living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Unless otherwise indicated scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches, and are used by permission.
Graphic design and desktop publishing by Rob Gorstein.

To order additional copies ofthis resource, call:
Presbyterian Distribution Services PC(USA) (800) 524-2612, PDS# 74340-95-019 or United Methodist Committee on Relief, (703) 284-3601