Report from TAGAYTAY, Philippines 7:45 AM

Youth and Young Adults from across the connection are safely sheltering in place in Tagaytay, Philippines during Typhoon Rammasun, locally known as Glenda. Delegates and observers for the Global Young People’s Convocation have been arriving at the Center for Community Transformation (CCT) for the opening event tonight, July 16th. Participants were awoken in the middle of the night due to strong winds and rain. Everyone was gathered in the common meeting spaces of each building. Young people supported one another with songs and prayers to get through the early morning hours. They prayed for the nearby community and those with less secure shelter. The Division on Ministry with Young People moved the entire convocation to a central secure building during the eye of the storm. Other buildings sustained damage to roofs, windows and minor flooding. After confirming everyone was accounted for Mike Ratliff, Associate General Secretary for Young People’s Ministries, “Everyone at the CCT center is safe. Our team is in the process of making plans for moving forward.” Bishop Hope Morgan Ward arrived early for the event to spend time with Global Mission Fellow candidates who are being trained at the CCT to be commissioned during the Global Young People’s Convocation. “Everyone is safe and there is a strong community already developing among the young people who have come from all over the world.”