Bishop Bruno Calls for Assistance, Prayers for Victims of Hurricane Katrina... Thursday Sept 1 2005: Donations are desperately and immediately needed to help relieve suffering in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, which battered the southeastern coast of the United States earlier this week, says Bishop Diocesan J. Jon Bruno, who also calls on the people of the Diocese of Los Angeles to offer prayers for the victims, many of whom have lost everything in the disaster.
Episcopal Relief and Development, the national Church's agency (formerly known as the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief), has sent trained teams to the area to assist in rescue and relief efforts, and is gathering funds for both immediate relief and long-term assistance to storm victims.

In addition to lost homes and businesses, many Episcopalians in the Gulf Coast have seen their churches destroyed by flooding and high winds (see story, below, from Episcopal News Service). One message e-mailed to a member of the bishop's staff describes a church's organ and pews floating by in a flooded street.

Bishop Bruno has asked that members of congregations in the Diocese of Los Angeles make their contributions to ERD. Monetary donations are the most effective, Bishop Bruno notes, because they can be used to get supplies immediately to the affected areas. Checks may be made out to ERD and sent to the Treasurer of the Diocese, P.O. Box 512164, Los Angeles, Calif., 90051-0164. The diocesan finance office will forward all donations directly to ERD on behalf of the people of the Diocese of Los Angeles.