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From an ELCA News Article dated August 23, 2006
Since Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma struck the U.S. Gulf Coast nearly one year ago 15,000 volunteers have logged 600,000 hours of service, worth an estimated $10.5 million of rebuilding work. These volunteers worked on behalf of Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) to rebuild homes and communities in hurricane-devastated areas. LDR is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
The 2005 hurricane season included 26 named storms, 13 of which were hurricanes that caused an insured loss of more than $47 billion, according to LDR. The most powerful of these storms were Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, which caused widespread damage throughout Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
A year later ELCA Domestic Disaster Response and LDR remain in the recovery phase, said Heather L. Feltman, director of LDR and ELCA Domestic Disaster Response. Coordinating long-term responses with other faith-based and community disaster partners, LDR continues to provide spiritual and emotional care to survivors and caregivers, coordinate volunteer efforts, and secure long-term case management for survivors who have lost their homes and livelihoods, she said. LDR distributed hardship grants to survivors in need of financial assistance following the hurricanes.
"LDR is providing housing for hundreds of volunteers weekly," said Feltman. It has organized a volunteer site in Texas, six volunteer sites in Louisiana, three in Mississippi and two in Alabama.
As LDR continues its commitment to long-term disaster response, LDR must be able to sustain its volunteer efforts, said Feltman. "That means our work is not completed in the 12 months after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The church will remain committed to accompanying those impacted by these storms for years to come," she said.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita damaged or destroyed 34,000 units of rental housing along the Mississippi coast, representing 80 percent of the total rental housing stock pre-Hurricane Katrina, Feltman said. In Louisiana, 84,000 rental units were destroyed or suffered major damage. Of the 84,000 units, 88 percent were affordable to low-income homes, she said.
"Our volunteers rebuild thousands of houses, providing skilled labor and building materials. However, these efforts are not necessarily impacting the replacement of rental stock along the devastated coast. We are working closely with our LDR affiliate agency, Lutheran Social Services of the South, and other (entities) to explore how we might work with landowners and landlords to create affordable rental stock and housing," Feltman said.
"LDR has assisted thousands of individuals and families left devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Help and hope is being restored," Feltman said. "Many people have shared with me, 'I had no idea that people who I've never met would come from hundreds of miles away to help us. It gives me hope when I see so many people working in our communities. Thank you.'"
In other work "LDR has sent chaplains to some of the most devastated communities to address many of the spiritual and emotional care issues that arise after such devastating disasters," said Feltman. Lutherans have also volunteered in Camp Noah, a week-long day camp for children recovering from natural disasters. More than 65 camps were held across the church in summer 2006.
LDR's participation in Katrina Aid Today -- a national consortium of social service and volunteer organizations -- has allowed LDR affiliates to hire 158 paid case managers across the Gulf Coast. Case managers advocate for individuals and families in locating additional resources to rebuild lives, she said.
"Please remember those volunteering and those rebuilding their lives after these destructive storms in your prayers," Feltman said. "Many still struggle day to day just to meet their basic needs and the needs of their children," she said.
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