GLAD Alliance and Week of Compassion to Partner For Long-Term Response to PULSE Nightclub Shooting

Rev. Dan Adolphson, GLAD Moderator & Rev. Caroline Hamilton-Arnold, Associate Director, Week of Compassion

In her statement responding to the shooting at the PULSE nightclub in Orlando on June 12, General Minister and President Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins expressed a hope that our LGBTQ neighbors, with their families, friends, and allies, would ‘find courage and hope in the knowledge of our love.

In the three weeks since that horrific event, Disciples have demonstrated their love in incredible ways—local congregations in Orlando prepared care packages for first responders and opened their buildings as sanctuary for the grieving and as staging ground for reporters covering the events; local Disciples chaplains offered care in hospitals and at public gatherings; congregations near and far offered prayers and words of comfort and solidarity. In this moment, the people of Orlando have shown themselves to be resilient and compassionate in the face of hateful violence and deep pain. Local and national businesses, organizations, and religious communities are working alongside government agencies to meet the current needs of the Orlando community.

Yet, the effects of this tragedy will extend far beyond this moment. Knowing that grief lingers and the process of recovery is lengthy, Week of Compassion and the GLAD Alliance have been in conversation with the Florida Region and local congregations about providing support and resources over the coming year. Working cooperatively across the expressions of our church, we aim to, as Rev. Dr. Watkins encouraged, ‘reach out to one another as one human family,’ to provide hope and restoration.”