By Stuart Mann
A service of solidarity in aid of the Diocese of North Eastern Caribbean & Aruba has resulted in an outpouring of support.
More than $10,000 has been given by people in the Greater Toronto Area to provide relief to the islands, which were devastated by hurricanes Maria and Irma last September. In addition to Aruba, the diocese comprises the islands of Antigua, Barbuda, Dominica, Monserrat, Anguilla, Nevis, Saba, St. Bart’s, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts and St. Martin/Maarten.
The donations are being given to the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF), which is working with local partners in the Caribbean to provide food, clean water, clothes and personal care items to the hardest hit islands.
A further $5,000 US could be coming from Episcopal Relief and Development, an international relief and development agency of The Episcopal Church, for a joint project with PWRDF.
“We are delighted by the tremendous support and compassion showed by everyone who has given so freely to our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean,” says Lance Wilson, ODT, a member of St. John the Divine, Scarborough and one of the organizers of the service.
Mr. Wilson says the fundraising is ongoing and much relief work still needs to be done. Donations can be made online to PWRDF or by mail to PWRDF, 80 Hayden, Toronto, ON, M4Y 3G2. Cheques should be directed to “Hurricane Relief.”
The service on Dec. 2 at St. Andrew, Scarborough, was organized by the Toronto Anglican Hurricane Relief Committee, a local group of Anglican clergy and lay members. Bishop Peter Fenty, a native of Barbados and the area bishop of York-Simcoe, told those in attendance that Christians must go beyond sympathy and prayer and lend concrete aid to those struck by disaster.
Bishop Fenty said natural disasters offer an opportunity for people to test their strength and to respond, like God, with love and compassion – “to discover the life that exists even in the face of death.” He urged people “in the depths of our hearts be responsive to the needs of others” and give generously.
For more information on donating or the work of the Toronto Anglican Hurricane Relief Committee, contact Bishop Peter Fenty at pfenty@toronto.anglican.ca, or by phone, 905-833-8327.