Mercy forever.

photo: Mrs. Carmen Olivares, oldest member of El Buen Pastor Lutheran Church, cleaning up following storms in McAllen, Texas

Late Thursday evening, devastating storms, including severe hail, slammed unexpectedly into the town of McAllen, Texas.  Rev. Ruben Dominguez, pastor of El Buen Pastor Lutheran Church in McAllen, said the parsonage received moderate damage.  The storm broke all the windows on the north side of the parsonage and tore several shingles from the roof.  Some minor flooding damaged furniture.  The church building also received similar damage, and the property is currently flooded.

The pastor is currently being lodged in a hotel until the parsonage windows can be boarded.  The church leaders are still contacting members to assess their needs.  So far, a couple of members’ homes have been similarly affected, although it is difficult to make contact with everyone because phone lines are still down and roads are closed due to flooding.

Please keep the members of El Buen Pastor Lutheran Church in your prayers as they continue to assess the damage and check on their members.  If you would like to make an offering to assist with disaster relief in this area, please mail a check, noting “McAllen Texas Storms” in the memo, payable to the LCMS: LCMS, P.O. Box 66861, St. Louis, MO 63166-6861.  The Lord be with you!

[See the latest update in the April 4 post: http://mercyforever.lcms.org/2012/04/texas-twisters-latest-in-string-of-disasters-lcms-checking-on-damage-in-lone-star-state/ ]

-          Rev. Dr. Edward O. Grimenstein, Manager of Disaster Response