Almighty God, we entrust all who are dear to us to your never-failing care and love, for this life and the life to come, knowing that you are doing for them better things than we can desire or pray for. We ask you to hold our sisters and brothers suffering from the ravages of the recent storms in your arms and comfort them as they recover. We ask all of this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Nell Bolton is executive director of the Office of Disaster Response of the Diocese of Louisiana.
The Rev. Jane Bearden
Hurricane Gustav at its height and in the aftermath
Friday, Sept. 7, 2008
Dear Friends and Supporters,
We thank each of you for your concern and offers of support as we seek to respond to Hurricane Gustav. As many of you are aware, Gustav knocked out power throughout our Diocese, and several areas are facing weeks without electricity. This, in turn, has created significant problems for people’s access to food, health care, and in some cases even safe drinking water, while also contributing to major fuel shortages. For many households, the economic hardship of evacuation—calculated for many in unbudgeted expenditures of gas, hotel stays, and meals away from home—has been exacerbated by the continued power outage. Relief supplies from FEMA, the Red Cross, and Salvation Army have begun to arrive, but lines are long and demand far outpaces supply. In addition, many rural areas are still waiting to be served.
Of course, donations are always welcome: click on the link and select "Katrina/Gulf Coast Relief" where it asks how you would like your gift to be used. However, you can also take action. Many parishes are now taking on mission trips to the Gulf Coast. Volunteers are needed to clean out and rebuild houses, serve meals and perform other services as needed. Contact the task force or the Rev. Jane Bearden if you would like a speaker to visit your parish or you want help with organizing a trip; also see the attached planning guide.
For other possibilities, check out Rev. Jane's suggestions.
In January of 2007, the task force commissioned the Rev. Jane Bearden
to work with our partner, the Church of the Redeemer in Biloxi,
Mississippi and with the Diocese of Mississippi. Jane writes a blog where you can read stories of her experiences working in the area and develop a full understanding of how valuable her work is.