UMCOR Bright Spots

IN TODAY'S ISSUE
October 26, 2006

Storm Experience Builds Friendships Across The Church

Ecumenical Spirit Builds Hope In Mississippi

This Week's Quote

Recovery Stats

Thousands of Hours (Slide Show)

STORM EXPERIENCE BUILDS FRIENDSHIPS ACROSS THE CHURCH

By Susan J. Meister, Gulf Coast Communications

"Katrina has done a lot for me," explained homeowner Miss Mable. "I thank the good Lord (because) I have met so many wonderful people."

A couple from Maine, Brenda and Irving Oullette, were two of many who came to New Orleans to help with cleanup. Miss Mable's house, their work site, is close to the southern end of the 17th St. Canal that flooded after Hurricane Katrina. Miss Mable had lived there for 50 years and had just celebrated her 80th birthday before the storm plunged through.

But her contact with her new friends from Maine didn't end when all the ruined furniture, appliances and sheet rock were carried out of her home. Miss Mable has since traveled to visit Brenda and Irving and members of their church in Maine and to their daughter's home in Burlington, Vermont.

"They Treated Me Just Like Family"

Miss Mable (right) shares a smile with Uptown Recovery Station operations coordinator, Marva Mitchell.
Susan Meister/UMCOR

"They treated me just like I was family," Miss Mable enthused. "But they had to show me how to eat a lobster!"

Miss Mable has photos and news clippings about her new friends, including a photo that shows her speaking to members of Bath United Methodist Church in the Oullettes' back yard. As a result, sixteen persons from the church have signed up to come back to New Orleans on a mission trip in February 2007. A story by the Oullettes in the April 17 issue The Times Record described their experiences in New Orleans, nearly 1,700 miles away, and urged persons to contact the UMCOR/LA Storm Recovery Center to offer assistance.

Uptown Recovery Station Helps in Recovery

Miss Mable's appreciation extends to the Uptown Station of the Louisiana United Methodist Storm Recovery Center. In a letter to site manager Roger Brunell, she thanked the Station for sending all the volunteers to her home: "Without the help of all the young men and women, I don't know how I would have gutted my home and removed all of the debris. I cried out to the Lord and he answered my prayers."

Miss Mable (center) shares her story with Roger Brunell (left) and Marva Mitchell of the Uptown Recovery Station, New Orleans.
Susan Meister/UMCOR

The Uptown Recovery Station, located at the People's Community Center on Simon Bolivar Avenue in New Orleans, is led by operations coordinator Marva Mitchell. Mitchell, a retired pastor, is herself a survivor of the storm. Her house in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans was damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

The People's Community Center is being outfitted to house volunteer teams who come to help with rebuilding in New Orleans.

Miss Mable is also grateful to pastor Rev. Carol Wynn Crawford. Known as Callie, Rev. Crawford welcomed Miss Mable to Rayne Memorial as a new church home, since her own church was destroyed.

"Rev. Callie is a wonderful person," Miss Mable said. "She didn't mind all that mold (when she helped gut my house).

"And she told me 'You have a church here.'"

"I have made lasting friendships," Miss Mable exclaimed, showing off her Maine T-shirt. "There is just so much love."

The first person account, "Katrina couldn't take their faith," by Brenda and Irving Oullette, that appeared in The Times Record is available on-line.

TELL-A-FRIEND

Please pass this email on to your friends who aren't yet acquainted with UMCOR so they can learn about our long-term recovery work in partnership with the annual conferences of Mississippi and Louisiana.

For more on the United Methodist recovery work visit these web sites:
UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief)
UM News Service
Mississippi Conference
Louisiana Conference
Texas Conference
Alabama-West Florida Conference

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Our Work

Thomas and Mary cut the ribbon on their new Katrina Cottage, an ecumenical project of churches in the Long Beach MS area.
Susan Meister/UMCOR

ECUMENICAL SPIRIT BUILDS HOPE IN MISSISSIPPI

Thomas and Mary had built their home in Pass Christian, on the southern coast of Mississippi, and raised their four children there. The home was damaged in 1969 by Hurricane Camille, but Katrina destroyed it.

Through an ecumenical partnership, Camp Coast Care Cabins, the couple now has a newly built "Katrina Cottage." Built in a shot-gun style floor plan, the home has two bedrooms. It will be placed on their former house foundation in "the Pass."

The Mississippi United Methodist Katrina Response Central Region, headquartered at Seashore Assembly, was asked to identify a family for the Katrina Anniversary Project. Case manager Marianne Gregg led the selection process.

"This is one of the most positive things that has happened," Gregg said. "It shows a wonderful ecumenical spirit."

Many of the ongoing interfaith relationships in the area are fostered through the Interfaith Disaster Task Force (IDTF). Elijah Mitchell, regional coordinator, is a board member. He describes their mission: "to facilitate communication, coordination, and collaboration among organizations involved in disaster relief and recovery that serve vulnerable populations." UMCOR supports and encourages ecumenical partnerships in disaster response.

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Katrina Cottage, Episcopal Bishop Duncan Grey sprinkled water, praying, "The water that destroyed your home now blesses it."

Mary is anxious to move into her new home and vacate the FEMA trailer, which she describes as a "bird cage."

The staff at Seashore Assembly, one of the four regional offices of the Mississippi UM Katrina Response, welcomes volunteer teams to help with recovery efforts.

Power Point Slide Show DOWNLOAD
THOUSANDS OF HOURS
Download this slide and use in your Sunday morning announcements or mission minute