VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 5/25/11)—While responding as the hands of feet and Christ in the disaster-stricken regions of Joplin, Mo., and Tuscaloosa, Ala., American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS) asks American Baptists to donate to One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS).

ABHMS has released $20,000 total in OGHS funds to Joplin and Tuscaloosa via Church World Service (CWS), but additional funds are needed. ABHMS had previously donated $10,000 to Shaw University, Raleigh, N.C.

In addition, ABHMS and its partners are in the process of coordinating volunteer clean-up efforts in affected regions.

“At least 89 people have died in a tornado that hit Joplin, Mo., Sunday―the deadliest of 68 weekend tornadoes that affected seven states in a sweep from Oklahoma to Minnesota. The Joplin tornado may be the single deadliest tornado in the United States since 1953,” according to a statement from CWS. “The weekend of tornadoes is the latest in a series of serious domestic disasters in recent months, which have included floods.”

“The states with significant damage from the flooding include Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Louisiana,” the statement continues. “The states with significant spring storm and tornado damage, aside from Missouri [which had already been affected by previous tornadoes and storms] include Alabama, Illinois, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia, Georgia and Ohio.”

CWS requests donations of emergency clean-up buckets filled with cleaning supplies. For instruction on assembling and shipping buckets, visit the organization’s Web site at www.churchworldservice.org.

For more information about donating to OGHS or volunteering for clean-up efforts, contact Victoria Goff, ABHMS national coordinator of Volunteer Ministries, at victoria.goff@abhms.org or 800-ABC-3USA, x2449. When donating to OGHS for these disasters, please indicate “Alabama Tornado,” “Mid-West Floods” or “Missouri Tornado.”

American Baptist Home Mission Societies—the domestic mission arm of American Baptist Churches USA—ministers as the caring heart and serving hands of Jesus Christ across the United States and Puerto Rico through a multitude of initiatives that focus on discipleship, community and justice.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with 5,500 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.