MALAKAL, SOUTH SUDAN (February 6, 2014) — Three children who participated in the Evangelical Covenant Church of South Sudan’s Vulnerable and Orphan Children Center (VOC) project were among the 200 people fleeing fighting here who died when a ferry capsized last month.

A New York Times report at the time reported that the drowning happened amid a “frenzy” as people sought to escape the violence as fighters approached.

The ECCSS leader who monitors the project was wounded in the hand earlier in the month. He is currently recuperating.

VOC is a project conducted in partnership with Covenant World Relief and serves children who have been orphaned or have only one parent. In addition to providing immediate needs, the center focuses on nutrition, medical care, and education.

In a country already among the poorest in the world, food has become even more difficult to obtain. Soldiers looted grain raised by an ECCSS farm in Malakal, a church leader wrote in a recent email. “The grains from other ECCSS farms in Maiwut and Akobo are safe and will be used to support the poor and the most needy people who are displaced by the fighting.”

The denomination has developed a reputation for serving the poorest of the poor regardless of whether they are part of the ECCSS.

Covenant World Relief has set up a special fund to provide assistance through partners already working in refugee camps. To donate, click here.