The magnitude of the Hurricane Katrina devastation has overwhelmed rescue efforts. Men, women and children lack food, water and even the minor conveniences of life. The elderly lack shelter and necessary medications, babies are dying, and people are begging for help. Hospitals are being evacuated, people are still stranded on rooftops and other precarious places, entire neighborhoods have disappeared, cities are flooded, and there is little or no relief in sight.
It is hard to imagine anyone being able to watch the news reports and not feel at least a twinge of interest to help. I’m not an expert but I would like to offer a couple of suggestions.
First, prayer. Prayer for peace of mind to help these folks cope with horrific conditions and the rising terror of not knowing whether loved ones are dead or alive. I have read several prayer requests regarding worried family members whose last communication with someone was, “The water is rising and I’m sitting on the kitchen counter,” or “I’m having to hold the cell phone over my head to keep it above water.” And then there is no more phone service.
People take up collections of baby clothing or other items for disaster victims. This is well-intentioned, but then they can’t find an agency to accept the items. Many call the American Red Cross office, but this organization is not equipped to accept, ship, sort or store material donations Such a donation could be made to a local charity. Katrina has displaced so many people that some could end up in your neighborhood and your local church or charity could disperse donated clothing and food to help them. Some are taken in by relatives who can barely feed their immediate families, so your donation would be a big help.
As a news reporter stated tonight, “Don’t send blankets, send money.” A financial donation can be used wherever it is needed, for whatever the immediate need is, whether for food, medication, temporary shelter, etc.
If a company has five hundred cases of bottled water, or other necessity used in quantity, it would like to donate and is willing to pay shipping charges, this might be a different story. Call the Red Cross or other agency to learn whether such a donation can be accepted.
Many want to volunteer to go to the disaster site and volunteer their talents – doctors, nurses, those who work cadaver dogs and others with specialized talents. In an emergency, trained personnel are needed. If you think you might be interested in some type of disaster work, find your niche now, where you can volunteer and undergo whatever training you need to be included on the list of those to be called out to help another time.
TV stations, web sites, and others are soliciting donations for different charities to help Katrina refugees and survivors. If you donate on the Internet, please be certain you are actually donating to the charity you think you are. Unfortunately, with any disaster, unscrupulous people crawl out of the woodwork to scam you out of your money, and some are so convincing you might never know you were victimized.
If you would like to donate to the American Red Cross disaster relief fund (I mention this agency because it is the only one with which I am familiar), you can mail your donation to your local ARC chapter, designating the funds for “Katrina relief.” You can also stop by the local office and donate in person. Or mail a check for domestic disasters to The American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. Credit card donations can be made by calling (English) 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669). (Spanish) 1-800-257-7575. Credit card donations can be made online at www.disasterrelief.org also.
There is also a need for those willing to take in refugees from Katrina and those in need of temporary and possibly long term housing to get together. Check out
http://www.craigslist.org/ This is the only place I am aware of to list or to find housing. If anyone is aware of others, please email me with the information.
Rescue operations are also under way for surviving animals. The Coast Guard gave permission for Carolyn Keeton and a team of volunteers from All Cats to enter New Orleans today, and as of late this afternoon they had rescued 47 dogs and 36 cats from rooftops, trees and other precarious places. In the event anyone is interested in donating to All Cats, Inc. rescue efforts, email me privately and I will send you the contact information.
Many thanks to those hotels and motels that have relaxed their restrictions and are allowing pets. For people to lose everything – some barely escaping with their lives – and then to wander from place to place looking for some place to accept them with their pets uses physical and emotional energy they don’t have to spare.
I met a woman and her six-year-old daughter today. They lost everything material in Katrina, but what the woman is concerned about is whether her son survived too. There are thousands more with the same concerns for their loved ones. Let’s do whatever we can to help them cope with what they have endured and to rebuild their lives.
