Mercy forever.

Photo: New bunk units made possible by the LCMS arrived in Minot, along with housing units from Orphan Grain Train (OGT), an LCMS RSO in Norfolk, Neb. OGT also provided a mobile kitchen and shower units for Hope Village. 

Join the Hope Village Board of Directors in celebrating the official ribbon cutting for “Hope Village” located on the grounds of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Minot, N.D., Saturday, May 12, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Hope Village is a one-stop service center for volunteers traveling to Minot to assist flood-affected families in the Souris Valley who are rebuilding their homes. Since opening on April 2, Hope Village has already provided 13,200 hours of volunteer labor to the people of Minot—and that’s while operating at one-fifth of their capacity. Volunteers have come from North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Indiana, British Columbia and more.

“We hope by the end of the summer to be able to give close to $3.2 million worth of volunteer labor to our community,” said Rev. Paul Krueger, Pastor of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Minot and Hope Village Board Director. “All this work is being provided through the Hope Village partners, with winter rebuilding continuing when the summer is done.”

Leaders are also quick to share that more volunteers are still needed. To learn more, visit the Hope Village website www.hopevillagend.org.

A special incentive grant for flood relief will match gifts, dollar for dollar, made to The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s Disaster Response ministry, as an opportunity to help families displaced by the North Dakota flood and others hit hard by future disasters. When fully subscribed, gifts and the incentive grant will provide up to $200,000 for flood-relief work.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony BBQ and fundraising concert

Along with the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Hope Village has organized a fundraising concert for that same evening featuring BBQ sandwiches and bluegrass music. The concert will take place at the Flickertail Gardens on the North Dakota State Fairgrounds from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The featured artist for the event is Monroe Crossing, a nationally recognized group from Minnesota that performs at 125 concerts or festivals a year. Special guest artists, the Rough Riders, are also scheduled to perform.

Both the concert and the meal are being provided without cost. Instead, a general donation for flood recovery will be gathered. Hope Village asked local sponsors to assist with the costs associated with the venue, food and concert so that 100 percent of the donations can go to the Souris Valley Long Term Recovery Committee.

To learn more about Hope Village, visit www.hopevillagend.org.

• Read a Reporter article about the LCMS partnership with Hope Village at http://reporter.lcms.org/pages/rpage.asp?NavID=19780
• Get involved in disaster response work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Learn more at www.lcms.org/disaster.