See also past Book Ends    

Global Stewardship

Funding appeals to help those deprived of basic human needs both in this country and overseas have played a pivotal role in our churchwide ministries in the past as well as the present. The ministries of the ELCA World Hunger Appeal and Domestic Disaster Response are built on past organizations, such as the Lutheran World Action (LWA) begun in 1940. LWA, directed by the National Lutheran Council, collected food, clothing, and medicine, as well as funds for reconstruction and relief for war-torn Europe. Appeals for funding came from printed publicity, such as this poster, as well as films, rallies, and conferences. In 1966, the U.S.A. National Committee for the Lutheran World Federation began to administer LWA’s program until 1977. Paul Empie served as its director from 1941-1977. Courtesy of ELCA Archives.