Friday, October 14, 2005
Current Needs List from Louisiana
I built a consolidated list and ran it by Tammany Oaks today. Here is the up to date list of requested items:
Water and Gatorade (still needed for areas just opening up to residents)
Food boxed to feed a family of 4 or 5 for a day. Some "MREs" (requires no cooking or refrigeration)
As many volunteers as possible to go for a week beginning on these dates: Nov 5, Dec 3, Dec 26th – Jan 2, Jan 14, Feb 4, Mar 4, and April 1 (no foolin :-)
Additional $50,000 in donations to fund the trips so that the volunteers have 0 financial pain
Gatoraid and water to cover volunteer's needs
Skilled trades people to go for 1 month trips with funding to cover their lost income and expenses
Cleanup supplies like:
Water and Gatorade (still needed for areas just opening up to residents)
Food boxed to feed a family of 4 or 5 for a day. Some "MREs" (requires no cooking or refrigeration)
As many volunteers as possible to go for a week beginning on these dates: Nov 5, Dec 3, Dec 26th – Jan 2, Jan 14, Feb 4, Mar 4, and April 1 (no foolin :-)
Additional $50,000 in donations to fund the trips so that the volunteers have 0 financial pain
Gatoraid and water to cover volunteer's needs
Skilled trades people to go for 1 month trips with funding to cover their lost income and expenses
Cleanup supplies like:
- Utility knives
- Work gloves
- Rubber gloves
- Rubber boots
- Disposable shoe covers
- Safety goggles
- Heavy duty wheelbarrows
- Shop vacs
- Cleaning chemicals (bleach, toilet bowl cleaner, general detergents)
- Cleaning brushes
- Cleaning rags
- Dehumidifiers
- Roofing supplies (shingles, tar paper, nails)
- Sheetrock supplies (drywall, tape, mud, knives, screws)
- Wall studs
- Electrical outlets
New Gallup Poll of 463,000 Red Cross Aid Requestors
This article on CNN.com this morning outlines the results from a Gallup poll of people who were effected by huricane Katrina and have requested aid from the Red Cross.
Interesting excerpts:
Interesting excerpts:
- Most said they had been able to get through the difficult time with the help of family and friends as well as their faith in God.
- Roughly 60 percent said they had trouble sleeping and felt depressed; about two-thirds reported feeling anxiety.
- Half the poll's respondents were separated from family members for at least a day. Seven percent said they still didn't know the whereabouts of at least one family member. 6% of parents were still separated from their children, and 16 percent said they had been separated but had since been reunited with their children
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Week 4 Experience - Gary Robbins from Centerville, Ohio
My personal experiences there tell me that normal will never be the same in New Orleans. The poor have been replaced and their twice-flooded homes and neighborhoods will be bulldozed and replaced by commercial development a city insider told me. While the mayor and others say the city is up and running, don't believe it. In the French Quarter they were somehow able to reopen bars with in a few days, but even though some areas do have water and electricity back on, I was told by this same city insider who lives next to the church we gutted, not to eat or drink anything in the city. While we did have running water in the minister's home next to the church, we didn't see any food establishments open.
Basically what you see each day is a stream of contractors, some hired by the city or FEMA others there trying to make a quick buck, insurance adjusters, people with signs "We Buy Houses" and very few clean up volunteers like our group that stream into the city after dawn from the outlying regions that have some services. They work in the city until almost dusk and then stream back out. Everything you need to work and survive that day you have to bring with you since everything is ruined or looted. Very few stay in the city at night at this point.
While you are there you will see huge piles of trash and debris at the locations of the few lucky owners that could get back in their neighborhood and salvage what little was left and try to start the massive undertaking of removing every part of their home or business that was damaged. Where we worked the water was 5 feet 8 inches high, which you can see frwater marksrks on the buildings. Everything has a putrid odor from decaying garbage, rotting food, and dead animals in the trash or beneath the structures were they apparently went for shelter and died.
While we were in the city I never saw a police car, Red Cross, or FEMA organization member delivering any services and we were 1 block from the cities highest traffic intersection at Carrollton Avenue and Canal just 6 blocks from the French Quarter. We saw no living dogs or cats and on my last day in the city I met 2 ladies from Chicago SPCA who were leaving food and water in strategic locations so the animals terrorized by the storm and hiding under homes and buildings during the day could eat at night. They told me that a looted Winn Dixie down the street has been turned into an emergency Vet Clinic. They estimated that 90% of the animals they are able to catch are so emaciated they have to be put to sleep and the others are being held until October 18 trying to match them with their owners on a website www.petfinders.com. After the 18th they will be shipped all over the US to try and find shelters that will hold them for adoption, but they assume that most will eventually have to be euthanized.
As you can probably tell by my rambling this was a very emotional and eye opening experience being there. While you can watch CNN or some other network and get a general understanding of what is happening, it's just not the same as experiencing it yourself. Now that it is 6 weeks old news and being replace by the Pakistan earthquake and other "new' news items it could easily be forgotten by most Americans, except for those whose lives were turned upside down by this disaster.
I hope to go back to help numerous times in the next year. The work a 150 volunteers did the one week I was there is like a grain of sand on a beach as to what still needs to be done. If you can make the time to go and help I urge you to do it as soon as possible. There are many tasks to be done, from hard manual labor to just being willing to let one of the storms victims talk to you about their experience to help them get closure. If you can't go personally send money to people who can go and you know it will be used for the right purposes. I need to thank those individuals who provided us with financial support and supplies and encouragement for are trip. If you have any questions or want to know more about how to volunteer and what is involved, please call me at 937-885-9494 or email me. We should have a DVD available early next week and I would be happy to show it to you or a group of people who are interested.
Gary
Basically what you see each day is a stream of contractors, some hired by the city or FEMA others there trying to make a quick buck, insurance adjusters, people with signs "We Buy Houses" and very few clean up volunteers like our group that stream into the city after dawn from the outlying regions that have some services. They work in the city until almost dusk and then stream back out. Everything you need to work and survive that day you have to bring with you since everything is ruined or looted. Very few stay in the city at night at this point.
While you are there you will see huge piles of trash and debris at the locations of the few lucky owners that could get back in their neighborhood and salvage what little was left and try to start the massive undertaking of removing every part of their home or business that was damaged. Where we worked the water was 5 feet 8 inches high, which you can see frwater marksrks on the buildings. Everything has a putrid odor from decaying garbage, rotting food, and dead animals in the trash or beneath the structures were they apparently went for shelter and died.
While we were in the city I never saw a police car, Red Cross, or FEMA organization member delivering any services and we were 1 block from the cities highest traffic intersection at Carrollton Avenue and Canal just 6 blocks from the French Quarter. We saw no living dogs or cats and on my last day in the city I met 2 ladies from Chicago SPCA who were leaving food and water in strategic locations so the animals terrorized by the storm and hiding under homes and buildings during the day could eat at night. They told me that a looted Winn Dixie down the street has been turned into an emergency Vet Clinic. They estimated that 90% of the animals they are able to catch are so emaciated they have to be put to sleep and the others are being held until October 18 trying to match them with their owners on a website www.petfinders.com. After the 18th they will be shipped all over the US to try and find shelters that will hold them for adoption, but they assume that most will eventually have to be euthanized.
As you can probably tell by my rambling this was a very emotional and eye opening experience being there. While you can watch CNN or some other network and get a general understanding of what is happening, it's just not the same as experiencing it yourself. Now that it is 6 weeks old news and being replace by the Pakistan earthquake and other "new' news items it could easily be forgotten by most Americans, except for those whose lives were turned upside down by this disaster.
I hope to go back to help numerous times in the next year. The work a 150 volunteers did the one week I was there is like a grain of sand on a beach as to what still needs to be done. If you can make the time to go and help I urge you to do it as soon as possible. There are many tasks to be done, from hard manual labor to just being willing to let one of the storms victims talk to you about their experience to help them get closure. If you can't go personally send money to people who can go and you know it will be used for the right purposes. I need to thank those individuals who provided us with financial support and supplies and encouragement for are trip. If you have any questions or want to know more about how to volunteer and what is involved, please call me at 937-885-9494 or email me. We should have a DVD available early next week and I would be happy to show it to you or a group of people who are interested.
Gary
Another Blog on the Louisiana Effort
Brett White (aka "Hippy" aka "ministry hobo":-) is working at Tammany Oaks coordinating volunteers. He's been putting up postings at least once a day with ongoing activities and kewl stories. Check it out at brettwhite.blogspot.com.
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Normal to who?????
News outlets are discussing parts of New Orleans approaching normalcy.
Dear Friends, don’t you believe it. While Bourbon Street is open, the French Quarter, and people are being allowed back in to most areas, the southern gulf area of the United States is nowhere near back to normal. People are still in shelters, camping in their front yards or living with friends. Restaurants and businesses remain closed. Semis line the streets picking up the waste of peoples lives ruined by the storm. I was just there and Slidell, Mandeville, New Orleans are nowhere near normal. I understand that Gulfport, Biloxi and other areas in Mississippi are worse yet. Just because the governor of LA and the Mayor of New Orleans need tourist traffic for the city to survive or revive, do not believe that things are “normal”. People are still suffering and need our help. And for the record the floods, winds, and other storm activities paid no attention to race, health, wealth, or other standards we like to use. It devastated entire communities. Rich, poor, black, white, Hispanic, and all those others that make America what it is have been affected.
A client of TTG’s is a hospital in Lake Charles hard hit by Huricane Rita. The hospital today remains only partially open, services are limited, and many many people have lost everything to Rita. We as a nation, as Christians, people of faith, or whatever you may call yourself can not just turn our eyes to the next disaster. Our help is needed and there are things all of us, all of us, can do!!
The following is a list of our needs for the area over the next 6 months and we need your help to make them happen. We are setting up Ohio as a central area to coordinate volunteers, supplies and services to Tammany Oaks and their outreach. Because of their success and your response they are beginning to branch out and act as a central warehouse of supplies and services for areas all over the affected Gulf Coast region. You have and can continue to make a significant difference. We cannot do it alone however so please pass this along to all those you know!
Volunteers – We have trips planned beginning Nov 5, Dec 3, Dec 26th – Jan 2, Jan 14, Feb 4, Mar 4, and April 1. We need people who can volunteer to go for a week of work. The work will consist of packing and distributing goods for other shelters and individuals, de-mucking houses, cutting trees, roofing, dry walling, and general construction. There is a great need for people to just be able to walk the streets in the areas where teams are working and hand out water and listen and encourage others. Everyone who can afford the time or get free will be able to find something to do. We need you. We will deal with the logistic and transportation headaches and God will use you to fill the needs. I recently went with my family and we will never be the same, consider taking yours. Email me or call 614-288-5825 to sign up for a week.
Money – We need to raise an additional $50,000 to cover the costs of these trips. We would also like to raise some additional funds to be able to sponsor some individuals to stay for up to a month and perform specialty construction work such as the dry wall and roofing needs. There are not enough contractors to go around, many homeowners had no insurance, and the insurance companies are in court trying to get out of paying these claims. In the meantime, we are needed. Donations can be sent to Spring Road Katrina Fund at 74 S. Spring Road Westerville Ohio 43081. Praise God and know that He is working on funding. Just today I had a church in Tuscaloosa AL volunteer to cover the costs of one of our 7 trips. If you want to earmark your funds for a specific purpose please send a note with your check. It can go for supplies, transportation, or for sponsoring workers. Please know that the Red Cross and other agencies are doing a great job with your entrusted donations but the affected people need more than food and encouragement, they need our help!!!!!
Supplies – while this list is ever changing and being met by God daily you can keep up with the needs by checking at the Tammany blog. If nothing else we will need food and supplies to take care of up to 100 people per week for each of our 7 trips. Donations are still being collected at the Spring Road Church Building.
There you have it, my shortest update in weeks. We simply need you! God needs you! The people affected by this tragedy need you! Read the testimonials on the site. The most common comment from those returning from trips is that they will never be the same. They are touched in a way by their service to these people that they have never before experienced. Find out what they are talking about and sign up!!!
May God bless you as you consider this need,
Brad
Dear Friends, don’t you believe it. While Bourbon Street is open, the French Quarter, and people are being allowed back in to most areas, the southern gulf area of the United States is nowhere near back to normal. People are still in shelters, camping in their front yards or living with friends. Restaurants and businesses remain closed. Semis line the streets picking up the waste of peoples lives ruined by the storm. I was just there and Slidell, Mandeville, New Orleans are nowhere near normal. I understand that Gulfport, Biloxi and other areas in Mississippi are worse yet. Just because the governor of LA and the Mayor of New Orleans need tourist traffic for the city to survive or revive, do not believe that things are “normal”. People are still suffering and need our help. And for the record the floods, winds, and other storm activities paid no attention to race, health, wealth, or other standards we like to use. It devastated entire communities. Rich, poor, black, white, Hispanic, and all those others that make America what it is have been affected.
A client of TTG’s is a hospital in Lake Charles hard hit by Huricane Rita. The hospital today remains only partially open, services are limited, and many many people have lost everything to Rita. We as a nation, as Christians, people of faith, or whatever you may call yourself can not just turn our eyes to the next disaster. Our help is needed and there are things all of us, all of us, can do!!
The following is a list of our needs for the area over the next 6 months and we need your help to make them happen. We are setting up Ohio as a central area to coordinate volunteers, supplies and services to Tammany Oaks and their outreach. Because of their success and your response they are beginning to branch out and act as a central warehouse of supplies and services for areas all over the affected Gulf Coast region. You have and can continue to make a significant difference. We cannot do it alone however so please pass this along to all those you know!
Volunteers – We have trips planned beginning Nov 5, Dec 3, Dec 26th – Jan 2, Jan 14, Feb 4, Mar 4, and April 1. We need people who can volunteer to go for a week of work. The work will consist of packing and distributing goods for other shelters and individuals, de-mucking houses, cutting trees, roofing, dry walling, and general construction. There is a great need for people to just be able to walk the streets in the areas where teams are working and hand out water and listen and encourage others. Everyone who can afford the time or get free will be able to find something to do. We need you. We will deal with the logistic and transportation headaches and God will use you to fill the needs. I recently went with my family and we will never be the same, consider taking yours. Email me or call 614-288-5825 to sign up for a week.
Money – We need to raise an additional $50,000 to cover the costs of these trips. We would also like to raise some additional funds to be able to sponsor some individuals to stay for up to a month and perform specialty construction work such as the dry wall and roofing needs. There are not enough contractors to go around, many homeowners had no insurance, and the insurance companies are in court trying to get out of paying these claims. In the meantime, we are needed. Donations can be sent to Spring Road Katrina Fund at 74 S. Spring Road Westerville Ohio 43081. Praise God and know that He is working on funding. Just today I had a church in Tuscaloosa AL volunteer to cover the costs of one of our 7 trips. If you want to earmark your funds for a specific purpose please send a note with your check. It can go for supplies, transportation, or for sponsoring workers. Please know that the Red Cross and other agencies are doing a great job with your entrusted donations but the affected people need more than food and encouragement, they need our help!!!!!
Supplies – while this list is ever changing and being met by God daily you can keep up with the needs by checking at the Tammany blog. If nothing else we will need food and supplies to take care of up to 100 people per week for each of our 7 trips. Donations are still being collected at the Spring Road Church Building.
There you have it, my shortest update in weeks. We simply need you! God needs you! The people affected by this tragedy need you! Read the testimonials on the site. The most common comment from those returning from trips is that they will never be the same. They are touched in a way by their service to these people that they have never before experienced. Find out what they are talking about and sign up!!!
May God bless you as you consider this need,
Brad
Doctor's Stories from the days after Katrina
These stories were published today in the current edition of the New Englland Journal of Medicine and are available free here: http://content.nejm.org/current.shtml
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Week 4 Day 3 - Providence Road Member's Comments
Editor's Note: Around 20 members of Providence Road Church of Christ in Charlotte, North Carolina met up with us to join in Team 4's effort.
This past Sunday, I heard a powerful lesson from a man named Jodi Vickry from Campus Church of Christ in Atlanta. The title of the lesson was “A Perfect Storm” and he began by telling us myths about what to do in a storm, and how they are nothing more than myths. He went on to tell us that the greatest myth about storms is that the ‘storms of life’ Build Character. He clarified this by stating that “the truth about Storms of Life is that they reveal character rather than build character”.
There have been so many different reactions from individuals down here along the gulf coast that have illustrated the point of Jodi’s lesson. We have seen and/or heard about some of the worst behavior played out in the news. We have also heard about how many opportunists have taken advantage of others in desperate need, for their own personal gain. However we have also seen the great character of some wonderful Godly people that have sacrificed so much to rebuild, and give to others that have lost everything.
I can not think of many first hand examples that I have witnessed that have impacted me more than what I have seen down here in Louisiana. The character of these people has been revealed through this storm that has literally taken everything away from them. Luke writes in chapter 3 verse 11 “The man with two tunics should share with him who has none and the one who has food should do the same”. To see neighbors that have lost so much helping one another and offering such hospitality to those of us who have come to serve them is very humbling.
-- Ryan Preston
When we were on our trip “down on the bayou,” we had the opportunity to help an elderly gentleman, Mr. Paul. The floodwaters had filled his trailer home and rendered all of his possessions useless. The contents of his home were outside, covered in a foot of mud. We had to throw everything into trash bags and haul them away. One of the things I had to throw away was his water soaked, mud caked Bible. I noticed that the Bible was opened to the end of Psalms 119 through Psalms 123. That night I read through those passages and found in Psalms 121: I lift up my eyes to the hills- Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.
-- Terri Jeltrup
This past Sunday, I heard a powerful lesson from a man named Jodi Vickry from Campus Church of Christ in Atlanta. The title of the lesson was “A Perfect Storm” and he began by telling us myths about what to do in a storm, and how they are nothing more than myths. He went on to tell us that the greatest myth about storms is that the ‘storms of life’ Build Character. He clarified this by stating that “the truth about Storms of Life is that they reveal character rather than build character”.
There have been so many different reactions from individuals down here along the gulf coast that have illustrated the point of Jodi’s lesson. We have seen and/or heard about some of the worst behavior played out in the news. We have also heard about how many opportunists have taken advantage of others in desperate need, for their own personal gain. However we have also seen the great character of some wonderful Godly people that have sacrificed so much to rebuild, and give to others that have lost everything.I can not think of many first hand examples that I have witnessed that have impacted me more than what I have seen down here in Louisiana. The character of these people has been revealed through this storm that has literally taken everything away from them. Luke writes in chapter 3 verse 11 “The man with two tunics should share with him who has none and the one who has food should do the same”. To see neighbors that have lost so much helping one another and offering such hospitality to those of us who have come to serve them is very humbling.
-- Ryan Preston
When we were on our trip “down on the bayou,” we had the opportunity to help an elderly gentleman, Mr. Paul. The floodwaters had filled his trailer home and rendered all of his possessions useless. The contents of his home were outside, covered in a foot of mud. We had to throw everything into trash bags and haul them away. One of the things I had to throw away was his water soaked, mud caked Bible. I noticed that the Bible was opened to the end of Psalms 119 through Psalms 123. That night I read through those passages and found in Psalms 121: I lift up my eyes to the hills- Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.-- Terri Jeltrup
Monday, October 10, 2005
Next Steps - Brad
Dear fellow volunteers, associates, clients, and friends: Please see website for additional info and pics at www.springroadcoc.com/Katrina
Well I am fresh from the field in Louisiana and let me tell you God is at work. There are many relief organizations at work there as we speak providing food, shelter, and other essentials. So far the only group we have come in contact providing any wide scale physical assistance is the Tammany Oaks group we have associated ourselves with. This is essential because there are people without insurance, people fighting insurance companies, and contractors who are charging outrageous sums of money to perform work. Even if money is no object there are not enough contractors to complete any work in a timely fashion.
I want to share with you that the vastness of the devastation is beyond comprehension. Yesterday, we posted an email my daughter sent to her school teacher as to her thoughts on one of the days we were there. Please read it. It catches the essence of what we were trying to do. She was given that assignment from one of her teachers as Westerville South High School.
I have never been more personally touched than to work side by side with my wife and daughter in the work of the Lord. We serve often in various church capacities but never before like this. Each evening at the devotionals teams would share where they saw Jesus on that particular day. He was always evident in many places but I shared on Tuesday night that I saw Him in my wife and daughter as they worked in ways and in conditions that we would never consider doing for ourselves here. We would hire it done. But here we were among mold, dust, fallen trees, water, smells of all kinds and destruction beyond our comprehension working for someone else in a way we would not consider for ourselves. If you want to spend some quality time with your family sign up for one of our trips, I guarantee your family will not return the same.
With this email I am informing you that our team has committed to sending at least 6 more teams to LA. We are also beginning to look at areas in Lake Charles where we have contacts. The area was very hard hit with Rita and the loss of property, business, and homes is substantial. Our current plan is to leave on Saturdays and return on Saturdays for these next 6 trips which should allow for an additional half day of work on Monday. The proposed dates are as follows: Nov 5, Dec 3, Jan 14, Feb 4 and Mar 4. In addition we are looking into a trip over Christmas break leaving on Dec 26th through Jan 1. This trip will have to be coordinated heavily as work may be tougher to find with families potentially being gone for the holiday. If you want to sign up for a trip please email me or call at 614-288-5825
Please understand a few things about what is happening down there:
Things are not getting back to normal – in order to rebuild the infrastructure and business community it is important to “sell” that things are getting back to normal. Well it’s not. The fact that the French Quarter is open only reflects massive amount of moving of junk and displacing it. And besides open for who? Things will not be back to normal for a long time. To put it into a sad perspective I couldn’t even find a drive through for a hamburger at 9:00 at night!!!!!
The work we are doing is only a drop in the bucket – however, it is much more beneficial to us and those who go and work and experience how God is working through this event than it will ever be to the overall impact of the hurricanes. One of the Tammany leaders told the story of the boy who came upon a beach full of washed up starfish. One by one he threw them back in the ocean. A stranger observing him stopped him and said “little boy don’t you realize that you can never save all these starfish, there are far too many to even matter” The boy looked at the stranger bent over picked up a starfish and threw it back it the ocean and said “it mattered to that starfish”. Thanks for that great illustration Brett. And I would venture to say it mattered even more to the little boy. Know that you can contribute and YOU can make the difference in someone’s life.
There is something for almost everyone – there is a wide variety of work to be done in Mandeville from cutting downed trees, to de-mucking houses, cooking, warehouse work, organization and more. There are food boxes to deliver and people who just need to talk. If you can go and not need entertained then there is something for you to do.
To date we have accomplished the following:
Here is what we need you to consider:
Talk to your church family – We have developed a DVD that is designed to be a self contained request and special offering. It contains images from the disaster set to music as appeals are made.
Promote – We are going to need additional volunteers. If you are students talk to your teachers about what it would take to be gone for a week. My daughter was able to do it and my son who goes to a different school was given permission but we decided he was too young (10). We also need promotion for additional funds. Promotion is not limited to central Ohio. I intend to visit some churches in Nashville soon hoping to secure volunteers and funds, send info to your families and friends in other states.
Pray – Pray for the safety of all those involved. Pray that God’s plan in this disaster will be clearly seen and followed, and pray that lives can continue to be changed as a result of the efforts being put forth.
We are in the process of setting up a separate organization to handle the administration of these items but for the time being continue to make donations payable to Spring Road Katrina Fund. They can be sent to 74 S Spring Road, Westerville Ohio 43081. May God bless you as you consider how you can make a difference in this event?
Because He first loved us,
Brad Hayes
Well I am fresh from the field in Louisiana and let me tell you God is at work. There are many relief organizations at work there as we speak providing food, shelter, and other essentials. So far the only group we have come in contact providing any wide scale physical assistance is the Tammany Oaks group we have associated ourselves with. This is essential because there are people without insurance, people fighting insurance companies, and contractors who are charging outrageous sums of money to perform work. Even if money is no object there are not enough contractors to complete any work in a timely fashion.
I want to share with you that the vastness of the devastation is beyond comprehension. Yesterday, we posted an email my daughter sent to her school teacher as to her thoughts on one of the days we were there. Please read it. It catches the essence of what we were trying to do. She was given that assignment from one of her teachers as Westerville South High School.
I have never been more personally touched than to work side by side with my wife and daughter in the work of the Lord. We serve often in various church capacities but never before like this. Each evening at the devotionals teams would share where they saw Jesus on that particular day. He was always evident in many places but I shared on Tuesday night that I saw Him in my wife and daughter as they worked in ways and in conditions that we would never consider doing for ourselves here. We would hire it done. But here we were among mold, dust, fallen trees, water, smells of all kinds and destruction beyond our comprehension working for someone else in a way we would not consider for ourselves. If you want to spend some quality time with your family sign up for one of our trips, I guarantee your family will not return the same.
With this email I am informing you that our team has committed to sending at least 6 more teams to LA. We are also beginning to look at areas in Lake Charles where we have contacts. The area was very hard hit with Rita and the loss of property, business, and homes is substantial. Our current plan is to leave on Saturdays and return on Saturdays for these next 6 trips which should allow for an additional half day of work on Monday. The proposed dates are as follows: Nov 5, Dec 3, Jan 14, Feb 4 and Mar 4. In addition we are looking into a trip over Christmas break leaving on Dec 26th through Jan 1. This trip will have to be coordinated heavily as work may be tougher to find with families potentially being gone for the holiday. If you want to sign up for a trip please email me or call at 614-288-5825
Please understand a few things about what is happening down there:
Things are not getting back to normal – in order to rebuild the infrastructure and business community it is important to “sell” that things are getting back to normal. Well it’s not. The fact that the French Quarter is open only reflects massive amount of moving of junk and displacing it. And besides open for who? Things will not be back to normal for a long time. To put it into a sad perspective I couldn’t even find a drive through for a hamburger at 9:00 at night!!!!!
The work we are doing is only a drop in the bucket – however, it is much more beneficial to us and those who go and work and experience how God is working through this event than it will ever be to the overall impact of the hurricanes. One of the Tammany leaders told the story of the boy who came upon a beach full of washed up starfish. One by one he threw them back in the ocean. A stranger observing him stopped him and said “little boy don’t you realize that you can never save all these starfish, there are far too many to even matter” The boy looked at the stranger bent over picked up a starfish and threw it back it the ocean and said “it mattered to that starfish”. Thanks for that great illustration Brett. And I would venture to say it mattered even more to the little boy. Know that you can contribute and YOU can make the difference in someone’s life.
There is something for almost everyone – there is a wide variety of work to be done in Mandeville from cutting downed trees, to de-mucking houses, cooking, warehouse work, organization and more. There are food boxes to deliver and people who just need to talk. If you can go and not need entertained then there is something for you to do.
To date we have accomplished the following:
- We have sent over 100,000 lbs of goods and supplies
- Sent over 160 workers to help families
- Collected just over $41,000 in monies or specific donations
Here is what we need you to consider:
Talk to your church family – We have developed a DVD that is designed to be a self contained request and special offering. It contains images from the disaster set to music as appeals are made.
Promote – We are going to need additional volunteers. If you are students talk to your teachers about what it would take to be gone for a week. My daughter was able to do it and my son who goes to a different school was given permission but we decided he was too young (10). We also need promotion for additional funds. Promotion is not limited to central Ohio. I intend to visit some churches in Nashville soon hoping to secure volunteers and funds, send info to your families and friends in other states.
Pray – Pray for the safety of all those involved. Pray that God’s plan in this disaster will be clearly seen and followed, and pray that lives can continue to be changed as a result of the efforts being put forth.
We are in the process of setting up a separate organization to handle the administration of these items but for the time being continue to make donations payable to Spring Road Katrina Fund. They can be sent to 74 S Spring Road, Westerville Ohio 43081. May God bless you as you consider how you can make a difference in this event?
Because He first loved us,
Brad Hayes
Week 2 "Angel April" story from Denise Rickard
I had fully intended to write updates while there, but between long hours of work and only seeing a laptop one time (and someone else was sending their story), I didn't find the opportunity.
Here is more complete information about a previously mentioned situation:
I had an opportunity to work with a young woman, probably mid 20's, named April, who came in to receive aid for 28 families. It was told in a previous update that she had come in to get supplies for 28 people, but it was 28 families ranging in size from one person to 18 people!
April lived in a trailer, and knew these people from church. She told me that if she didn't work, she would just fall apart. So here she was, notebook in hand, collecting things for people who had no way to get out themselves and get provisions.
There were two diabetics among them who April had checked three days before. One of them had 2 test strips left and the other had 3. According to one of the nurses, that was very bad and without checking their sugar levels could possibly be dead. I know that sounds melodramatic, but that surely could have been the outcome. It is something we probably will never know.
Another woman in her group was an elderly, grossly obese woman who wore Depends. When April found her, she had been sitting in the same Depends diaper for five days. She had no plumbing and no supplies. Needless to say, that was one of the things provided by the generous donations that pour into Tammany Oaks Church every day.
There were three infants, many 2 and 3-year-olds, and every age in between. We were able to give her food, toiletries, cleaning products, blankets, books, toys, shoes, dishes and water. These things could in no way fit into her little 5-seat car, so they were packed into a large Penske truck and several men followed her to her trailer.
She had cleaned out one room already, and was planning to clean out another to try and fit some of the things inside. The men took her some wooden pallets to stack things outside, and tarps to cover them.
The reason she didn't want the things delivered to each home was that there was not enough room to stack the boxes, so her plan was to drive the things to each family, or group of families (one home had 3 families living together, I think that was the 18-member family) so that they could actually use the stuff and still walk around.
This was an incredible undertaking for one person and one of the volunteers at Tammany Oaks called her "Angel April." Well, you would think that was a pretty exciting story, right? Well, April was wearing a large back brace over her clothing and when we were all finished loading her car and the Penske truck, I asked her why she had it on. She said she had been in an accident and was 100% disabled and was supposed to be in a wheel chair. She said she spends most of her time in bed. And here she was hauling heavy boxes and cases of water to 28 families.
And now you know the REST of the story!
Denise Rickard
Here is more complete information about a previously mentioned situation:
I had an opportunity to work with a young woman, probably mid 20's, named April, who came in to receive aid for 28 families. It was told in a previous update that she had come in to get supplies for 28 people, but it was 28 families ranging in size from one person to 18 people!
April lived in a trailer, and knew these people from church. She told me that if she didn't work, she would just fall apart. So here she was, notebook in hand, collecting things for people who had no way to get out themselves and get provisions.
There were two diabetics among them who April had checked three days before. One of them had 2 test strips left and the other had 3. According to one of the nurses, that was very bad and without checking their sugar levels could possibly be dead. I know that sounds melodramatic, but that surely could have been the outcome. It is something we probably will never know.
Another woman in her group was an elderly, grossly obese woman who wore Depends. When April found her, she had been sitting in the same Depends diaper for five days. She had no plumbing and no supplies. Needless to say, that was one of the things provided by the generous donations that pour into Tammany Oaks Church every day.
There were three infants, many 2 and 3-year-olds, and every age in between. We were able to give her food, toiletries, cleaning products, blankets, books, toys, shoes, dishes and water. These things could in no way fit into her little 5-seat car, so they were packed into a large Penske truck and several men followed her to her trailer.
She had cleaned out one room already, and was planning to clean out another to try and fit some of the things inside. The men took her some wooden pallets to stack things outside, and tarps to cover them.
The reason she didn't want the things delivered to each home was that there was not enough room to stack the boxes, so her plan was to drive the things to each family, or group of families (one home had 3 families living together, I think that was the 18-member family) so that they could actually use the stuff and still walk around.
This was an incredible undertaking for one person and one of the volunteers at Tammany Oaks called her "Angel April." Well, you would think that was a pretty exciting story, right? Well, April was wearing a large back brace over her clothing and when we were all finished loading her car and the Penske truck, I asked her why she had it on. She said she had been in an accident and was 100% disabled and was supposed to be in a wheel chair. She said she spends most of her time in bed. And here she was hauling heavy boxes and cases of water to 28 families.
And now you know the REST of the story!
Denise Rickard
Sunday, October 09, 2005
Sharing Pictures from your trips
For those of you who've been on work crews I'd like to encourage you to share your favorite pictures of your trips with everyone else and those who have contributed to make our trips possible. A friend of mine, Dave Reno has a server available on the Internet and has made space for us available. If you would like to post pictures, please send me an email at john.n.mcguire@jpmchase.com I can then get you instructions and help you around some of the pitfalls people have had, such as Macintosh machines and AOL ;-)
You can view the pics that are already out there at http://www.therenos.com/katrinapictures. There is a folder for each contributor that lists the files. You can click on each one in your browser to view the picture. These are actual resolution and some of them are quite big, especially if you have a dial-up link. I've found a way to build a "gallery" page for mine using Photoshop Elements which you can find at http://www.therenos.com/katrinapictures/johnmcguire/gallery/index.htm. I will be happy to help others build galleries as well. The gallery is good for simple viewing and is much smaller and more compatible with dial-up. It is interesting to look through the full resolution pics though as sometimes you see interesting detail. I found an airboat working a bayou in one of my pics behind the Citgo station at the St. Bernard Parish border checkpoint that I hadn't noticed while standing there taking the pictures.
You can view the pics that are already out there at http://www.therenos.com/katrinapictures. There is a folder for each contributor that lists the files. You can click on each one in your browser to view the picture. These are actual resolution and some of them are quite big, especially if you have a dial-up link. I've found a way to build a "gallery" page for mine using Photoshop Elements which you can find at http://www.therenos.com/katrinapictures/johnmcguire/gallery/index.htm. I will be happy to help others build galleries as well. The gallery is good for simple viewing and is much smaller and more compatible with dial-up. It is interesting to look through the full resolution pics though as sometimes you see interesting detail. I found an airboat working a bayou in one of my pics behind the Citgo station at the St. Bernard Parish border checkpoint that I hadn't noticed while standing there taking the pictures.
Weak 4 - Whitney Hayes Contributions
Editor's Note: Whitney Hayes is 15 and a Sophmore at Westerville South. I'll add additional notes to this posting when I get them.
10/3/05 11:17:05 PM
Ms. Shankle and class,
Today we drove four more hours to our final destination. As we headed into Mississippi we began to see tree damage. We saw an area where we believe a tornado hit. The houses had whole sides ripped off of them. It looked like they had been hit with a wrecking ball. The closer we got to Louisiana the more damage we began to see. Trees had been snapped in half or uprooted. The interesting part was that many of the trees looked as though they had been snapped from the north side. More and more trees began piling up the further we pressed on. When we stopped for lunch we saw signs down and a church across the street had multiple holes in its roof. If the damage was this bad and we hadn't even hit the storm surge yet I didn't want to know what awaited us in Mandeville.
When we finally arrived my time was spent playing with some kids at the church and packing up cleaning supplies and toiletries. Emma and Christian are 2 and 4 years old. Their parents are working here and they were very grateful to have someone to play with. We ate dinner and had a devo. Tomorrow I get to go out and de-muck houses. I'm really looking forward to getting to come in contact with these people. I can't wait to hear their stories and be able to make an impact on their lives.
I'm also very anxious because I know there are dangers out there, but I feel that the positive outcomes greatly out weigh the negatives. Hopefully the updates will be more exciting as we get out into the work field. Hope everything is going well back in Ohio.
-Whitney
Tue 10/4/2005 6:08 PM
Today was amazing!!! A crew of about 20 of us left at about 8:00 and drove for 30 minutes to Slidell. There was the previously seen tree damage but nothing could prepare me for what we saw once we took our exit. Businesses were gutted and trash was piled along the street. There were several parking lots full of boxes of clothing that people could go through. Almost everything was still closed. We pulled into a neighborhood, and I sat speechless. Fallen trees were everywhere; almost every house had been hit by one. Trash was piled up to 10 feet high on either side of the road. A large semi and a machine with a large claw were working on the street we were on to pick up the trash and take it to a landfill. I put on my boots, mask, and work gloves and headed into the house to get my assignments. The house reeked. The walls were covered with mold. We had to move some furniture and other small items out before we could start tearing down the walls. Once we got started everything went pretty quickly. Our instructions were to tear down everything: walls, ceiling, and floor. I started hammering at drywall and using a crow bar to take off door and window frames. Mold was everywhere. All the walls were covered with green, black, and brown blobs. There was a room that still had carpet in it and when you stepped on it water and mud would rise up around your feet. We cut it in to strips and hauled it to the curb. It was extremely hot inside the house, especially since we had to wear masks. As if we weren't sweaty enough, the mask created a greenhouse effect around our noses and mouths. The sweat just poured from our brows. The mold was so bad in some places that many of the walls would come down just by kicking them. They were very soggy. E
Everything smelled like waste and sulfur (rotten eggs). The area we were in was hit by a 30-foot wave of water.
The hardest part for me was having to see the homeowner help tear down her own house. She mainly worked with the crew on cleaning up the outside of her house. She still had photo albums in the house and we had to throw them all away. How a woman could be there as people ripped up her house and threw away everything that was left of her life is still a mystery to me. I mean, its not like you can say oh it’s just my house I can live somewhere else. Well I guess you can say that but there are still memories that were made there that can't be replaced.
We are now back at the church. My dad and I are making dinner for all of the volunteers tonight. I am so worn down after all the hard work that was done today. I just feel like crying. Not really for myself, but for the woman we helped today, the people we will help the rest of the week, and all the other people whose lives have been affected by this horrible tragedy. Their lives will never be the same. Today, many people would stop and walk outside to take in some fresh air, but something in me kept telling me to keep on going. I couldn't let myself stop working. I had to help this woman who had nothing left. I have been blessed with so much and yet she has everything taken away from her. Somehow she still had a smile on her face and thanked us for our work. I have great admiration for people who maintain their faith in times of trouble. She could have been angry and ungrateful, but instead she was kind and loving. I gripe and complain because of the littlest things and here this woman's house was completely destroyed and yet she was thankful. I can't even comprehend what this woman has been through and I don't think I ever will be able to.
Until tomorrow
-Whitney
Wed 10/5/2005 10:12 PM
Today we went down to New Orleans. The most amazing part was driving on the 23-mile long causeway. It was the only bridge out of 3 that had survived the hurricane. As we crossed Lake Pontchartrain, you could not see anything but water on either side. In front of us, we could see the misty outline of downtown New Orleans. We could see a couple of high rises' and the pancake shaped Superdome. Once we were off the causeway the devastation hit me. We passed by many businesses that were gutted or yet to be gutted. Many had boards on the windows and tarps on the roofs. We ended up taking a detour that turned out to have been completely unnecessary but it gave us an opportunity to see things we would have missed. As we got into the neighborhoods everything began to hit home. We saw several people emptying their homes. There was so much trash piled everywhere that the streets were completely blocked. All the houses had the neon orange spray-painted "x's" that meant the house had been searched. You could tell that many of the homes had once been very beautiful. They had little gardens and decorative metal fences. We worked at church today. Because the damage was so bad we had to wear respirators, double-layered gloves, and the ever-lovely marshmallow suits. We were covered head to toe. Nothing could get in and nothing could get out which meant that all the sweat was trapped inside. The result was a sauna effect. Later we were able to escape that prison and took down some more walls in a duplex down the street. The inside of the house was very beautiful with a large staircase and oak and tile floors. There was molding around the chandeliers that hung from the ceiling.
We came home early again because dad had to cook dinner. I slept for a while because I was exhausted. I've decided to take this time to tell you about the wonderful showers that we have at our facility. There are five plywood stalls for girls and four for guys. PVC pipe and the garden hose is our source of water, there is no heater. Every shower is cold. The curtains are made of tarps and the stalls are outside. The cold water feels really good when you're all sweaty until the breeze blows. Then the tarps blow up and you are in full view of anyone on that side of the stall. I've also got to meet some children here at the church. Emma and her brother Christia. Their parents work her at the building helping the relief effort. I played with them for several hours yesterday. They are so adorable. They love the attention and their parents really enjoy not having to worry about them. We played several games of pretend including batman, castle, and hide and seek. At one point Christian wouldn't stop giving me a hug and when I asked him what he was doing he said, "I'm loving on you". They are just the cutest kids and so sweet. That’s pretty much been it for today. Last full day of work tomorrow. It'll be really depressing to have to leave.
Until then,
Whitney
10/3/05 11:17:05 PM
Ms. Shankle and class,
Today we drove four more hours to our final destination. As we headed into Mississippi we began to see tree damage. We saw an area where we believe a tornado hit. The houses had whole sides ripped off of them. It looked like they had been hit with a wrecking ball. The closer we got to Louisiana the more damage we began to see. Trees had been snapped in half or uprooted. The interesting part was that many of the trees looked as though they had been snapped from the north side. More and more trees began piling up the further we pressed on. When we stopped for lunch we saw signs down and a church across the street had multiple holes in its roof. If the damage was this bad and we hadn't even hit the storm surge yet I didn't want to know what awaited us in Mandeville.
When we finally arrived my time was spent playing with some kids at the church and packing up cleaning supplies and toiletries. Emma and Christian are 2 and 4 years old. Their parents are working here and they were very grateful to have someone to play with. We ate dinner and had a devo. Tomorrow I get to go out and de-muck houses. I'm really looking forward to getting to come in contact with these people. I can't wait to hear their stories and be able to make an impact on their lives.
I'm also very anxious because I know there are dangers out there, but I feel that the positive outcomes greatly out weigh the negatives. Hopefully the updates will be more exciting as we get out into the work field. Hope everything is going well back in Ohio.
-Whitney
Tue 10/4/2005 6:08 PM
Today was amazing!!! A crew of about 20 of us left at about 8:00 and drove for 30 minutes to Slidell. There was the previously seen tree damage but nothing could prepare me for what we saw once we took our exit. Businesses were gutted and trash was piled along the street. There were several parking lots full of boxes of clothing that people could go through. Almost everything was still closed. We pulled into a neighborhood, and I sat speechless. Fallen trees were everywhere; almost every house had been hit by one. Trash was piled up to 10 feet high on either side of the road. A large semi and a machine with a large claw were working on the street we were on to pick up the trash and take it to a landfill. I put on my boots, mask, and work gloves and headed into the house to get my assignments. The house reeked. The walls were covered with mold. We had to move some furniture and other small items out before we could start tearing down the walls. Once we got started everything went pretty quickly. Our instructions were to tear down everything: walls, ceiling, and floor. I started hammering at drywall and using a crow bar to take off door and window frames. Mold was everywhere. All the walls were covered with green, black, and brown blobs. There was a room that still had carpet in it and when you stepped on it water and mud would rise up around your feet. We cut it in to strips and hauled it to the curb. It was extremely hot inside the house, especially since we had to wear masks. As if we weren't sweaty enough, the mask created a greenhouse effect around our noses and mouths. The sweat just poured from our brows. The mold was so bad in some places that many of the walls would come down just by kicking them. They were very soggy. E
Everything smelled like waste and sulfur (rotten eggs). The area we were in was hit by a 30-foot wave of water.
The hardest part for me was having to see the homeowner help tear down her own house. She mainly worked with the crew on cleaning up the outside of her house. She still had photo albums in the house and we had to throw them all away. How a woman could be there as people ripped up her house and threw away everything that was left of her life is still a mystery to me. I mean, its not like you can say oh it’s just my house I can live somewhere else. Well I guess you can say that but there are still memories that were made there that can't be replaced.
We are now back at the church. My dad and I are making dinner for all of the volunteers tonight. I am so worn down after all the hard work that was done today. I just feel like crying. Not really for myself, but for the woman we helped today, the people we will help the rest of the week, and all the other people whose lives have been affected by this horrible tragedy. Their lives will never be the same. Today, many people would stop and walk outside to take in some fresh air, but something in me kept telling me to keep on going. I couldn't let myself stop working. I had to help this woman who had nothing left. I have been blessed with so much and yet she has everything taken away from her. Somehow she still had a smile on her face and thanked us for our work. I have great admiration for people who maintain their faith in times of trouble. She could have been angry and ungrateful, but instead she was kind and loving. I gripe and complain because of the littlest things and here this woman's house was completely destroyed and yet she was thankful. I can't even comprehend what this woman has been through and I don't think I ever will be able to.
Until tomorrow
-Whitney
Wed 10/5/2005 10:12 PM
Today we went down to New Orleans. The most amazing part was driving on the 23-mile long causeway. It was the only bridge out of 3 that had survived the hurricane. As we crossed Lake Pontchartrain, you could not see anything but water on either side. In front of us, we could see the misty outline of downtown New Orleans. We could see a couple of high rises' and the pancake shaped Superdome. Once we were off the causeway the devastation hit me. We passed by many businesses that were gutted or yet to be gutted. Many had boards on the windows and tarps on the roofs. We ended up taking a detour that turned out to have been completely unnecessary but it gave us an opportunity to see things we would have missed. As we got into the neighborhoods everything began to hit home. We saw several people emptying their homes. There was so much trash piled everywhere that the streets were completely blocked. All the houses had the neon orange spray-painted "x's" that meant the house had been searched. You could tell that many of the homes had once been very beautiful. They had little gardens and decorative metal fences. We worked at church today. Because the damage was so bad we had to wear respirators, double-layered gloves, and the ever-lovely marshmallow suits. We were covered head to toe. Nothing could get in and nothing could get out which meant that all the sweat was trapped inside. The result was a sauna effect. Later we were able to escape that prison and took down some more walls in a duplex down the street. The inside of the house was very beautiful with a large staircase and oak and tile floors. There was molding around the chandeliers that hung from the ceiling.
We came home early again because dad had to cook dinner. I slept for a while because I was exhausted. I've decided to take this time to tell you about the wonderful showers that we have at our facility. There are five plywood stalls for girls and four for guys. PVC pipe and the garden hose is our source of water, there is no heater. Every shower is cold. The curtains are made of tarps and the stalls are outside. The cold water feels really good when you're all sweaty until the breeze blows. Then the tarps blow up and you are in full view of anyone on that side of the stall. I've also got to meet some children here at the church. Emma and her brother Christia. Their parents work her at the building helping the relief effort. I played with them for several hours yesterday. They are so adorable. They love the attention and their parents really enjoy not having to worry about them. We played several games of pretend including batman, castle, and hide and seek. At one point Christian wouldn't stop giving me a hug and when I asked him what he was doing he said, "I'm loving on you". They are just the cutest kids and so sweet. That’s pretty much been it for today. Last full day of work tomorrow. It'll be really depressing to have to leave.
Until then,
Whitney
