We live in a time of overwhelming need. Due to no fault of their own, millions of our Father in Heaven's children find themselves in unimaginable situations as they deal with the tragic effects of war, famine, natural disasters, and economic difficulties. But in the midst of this suffering, people throughout the world have rallied to come to the aid of their brothers and sisters.

We feel tremendously grateful for the generosity of members and friends of the Church. In September, members donated over one million hours of service in the U.S. alone. And donations to the Humanitarian Aid Fund were more than four times the monthly average.

Working with well-known and respected global partners, we've provided extensive relief to victims of famine in Africa, earthquakes in Mexico, fires in California, and hurricanes in the Caribbean and southern United States. But in addition to the lifesaving resources delivered following these disasters, even more noteworthy are the many thousands of Church volunteers who've come together on these occasions to help clean up, fix up, and, perhaps most importantly, to lift up those who have been impacted. It is truly Christian service in action. The Church is really not so much about an organization. The Church is much more about you, about every individual member. That makes all the difference. Your work, your service, your love, your kindness to God and your fellowman is a reflection of what the Church is all about. The tremendous work that the Church does from a humanitarian standpoint would really be impossible without the assistance of many other organizations. Some of them are domestic. Some are international. The reach of the Church and the help we provide would be impossible without them. And we're able to reach many more people, and the help is much more long-lasting because of them.

You know, as disciples of Jesus Christ, our hearts are to help everyone. Everyone around the world are our brothers and sisters. Yet LDS Charities cannot be in every area in the world. This is the best way to help in those areas of the world. It was interesting to come with UNICEF to a refugee camp that's newly established and just kind of see how the processes are being worked out to serve people. The best way you can help is to help people in your community and also to donate to the Church's Humanitarian Aid Fund. We make sure that 100 percent of the donations go to where it is needed. And we are able to do that because we work through partners. And those of us that have more, what a blessing it is to share with others that really, absolutely need our help.

It was Joseph Smith himself who said a member of this Church "is to feed the hungry, ... clothe the naked, [and] provide for the widow, to dry up the tear of the orphan, to comfort the afflicted, whether in this church, or in any other, or in no church at all, wherever he finds them."

I'm deeply grateful that as a church, we continue to extend humanitarian aid where there's great need. We've done much in this regard and have blessed the lives of thousands upon thousands of our Father's children who are not of our faith, as well as those who are. We intend to continue to help wherever such is needed. We express gratitude to you for your contributions in this regard.