In 1978, Rochester, Minn., was struck by a devastating flood. Torrential rains covered about a third of the city. With more than $60 million in damage and five lives lost, it was the worst flooding in Rochester's history. Still, even 40-plus years later, the memories of the natural disaster are strong for many.
"My husband grew up in Rochester and tells me stories about the flood—there was a river running right by Bethel," says Pastor Anjanette Bandel, who serves as lead pastor at Bethel Lutheran Church. "Those things really stick with you, and change your whole perspective."
Pastor Anjanette credits the long-lasting memories of that 1978 flood with inspiring the Bethel congregation to generously respond when natural disasters strike around the world. "It's in our DNA," she says.
When it comes to international disasters, Bethel members have long trusted Lutheran World Relief to express their love and God's love to people in the time of greatest need. "LWR does a great job of communicating what’s happening in all of these places," Pastor Anjanette says. "We know what the needs are that are being addressed there. That's a strength of LWR."
Pastor Anjanette Bandel stands in front of Bethel Lutheran Church in Rochester, MN.
A few years ago, the congregation's Social Missions Team reflected on how Bethel could make the most impact with their giving. They wanted to focus their giving, making a deeper impact by supporting fewer organizations rather than being pulled in several different directions. The 12-member group that oversees Bethel's giving to external organizations asked themselves where they saw the greatest impact being made with their giving. "LWR was at the top of that list," Pastor Anjanette says.
Bethel's members see LWR as an extension of their calling to "minister to human needs," which is one of the tenets of their mission statement.
"Though we can't all travel to these destinations, knowing that we're sending a donation for disaster relief draws us into relationship beyond the boundaries of distance. We discover that we can care for each other in ways that help us to all thrive as God's people," Pastor Anjanette explains.
Members of Bethel Lutheran Church during a kit assembly.
With Rochester being home to the world-famous Mayo Clinic, a significant portion of Bethel's members are medical professionals and they especially resonate with responding to health-related needs — clean water, hygiene, access to food. Bethel's most recent gift supported LWR's disaster response to Haiti's August 14 earthquake. The congregation generously gave $4,500 to provide earthquake survivors emergency food, clean water, hygiene kits and medical care. Last year they gave $2,000 to help LWR respond to back-to-back Hurricanes Eta and Iota in Central America with emergency food and hygiene supplies.
"We have a great deal of trust in LWR," says Pastor Anjanette, "because of its history of integrity as an organization that makes a difference and its transparency with spending. And we appreciate the faith connection—this is faith in action. We not only know that our dollars make a difference but we do this in response to what God has provided us and we can provide for our neighbor."