UMCOR Bright Spots

IN TODAY’S ISSUE
December 18, 2008

Case Manager Gives Homeowner the Gift of Persistence
“The Most Valuable Gift”
This Week's Quote
Recovery Stats
Louisiana Disaster Response…(slide show)

CASE MANAGER GIVES HOMEOWNER THE GIFT OF PERSISTENCE

By Susan J. Meister, Domestic Disaster Response Correspondent

James Anderson, case manager for the Southeast Station of the Louisiana Disaster Response Ministry in New Orleans has given Miss Willie Mae the gift of persistence this year.

Case manager James Anderson shares a smile and a hug with Miss Willie Mae.
Photo by Susan J. Meister/UMCOR

The homeowner’s property in Buras, Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, was completely obliterated by the storm surge from Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. “The mobile home, two porches, fences, concrete – everything – just gone,” Miss Willie Mae sighed. Plaquemines Parish, the peninsula southeast of greater New Orleans, between the Gulf Coast and the Mississippi River, was devastated by the wind and water of the hurricane.

“I was working with other agencies to see if anyone would help with a new mobile home,” Anderson said.

“I got the paperwork and all the documentation together on her case (for the Long Term Recovery Committee) and I thought it would be quick and easy. “But then the Committee wouldn’t decide if they wanted to do mobile homes,” he continued. “It was difficult and trying, but I wasn’t going to give up! The day I got the call about the approval, I almost felt paralyzed and I dialed Miss Willie Mae very gingerly.”

Funds for New Mobile Home to be Released Soon

The homeowner is waiting for funds to be released so that she can buy a mobile home and move out of a FEMA trailer – where she has lived for over three years since the storm turned her life upside down. She is watching every penny so that she can bring more dirt in to build up her land and pay for insurance.

“I’ll admit, there were times I felt like giving up,” Miss Willie Mae said. Her husband needs to drive a 58 mile round trip three times a week for dialysis and is facing major surgery. She has felt stress from other serious family situations.

“But someone gave my daughter-in-law an envelope with $25 in it for gas money today,” she said, with tears in her eyes. “And my sister is paying for a hotel room so we can stay the night before my husband’s surgery. There are good people like Mr. James out there.”

A Greater Presence for Plaquemines Parish

The Southeast Station of the Louisiana Conference disaster recovery ministry, which covers the greater New Orleans area, the Northshore/Slidell, and Plaquemines Parish, is making changes to have a greater presence in Buras. Rev. and Deputy Director Amy Mercer, reports that the ministry is working with Trinity UMC, Buras, to establish an office and a volunteer housing facility. Her records show that the ministry has almost 140 cases from Plaquemines Parish on their case docket as of the end of 2008.

More attention is good news for Miss Willie Mae. “This is my home,” she explained. “Our people are ‘tight’ – we look out for each other. You know, I really think this storm has brought people closer together.”

Mr. James is also looking forward to doing case management from an office in Buras. He encouraged Miss Willie Mae to volunteer in the new office once it’s ready.

“Oh, I can do that!” she laughed. “I’ll tell everybody how you helped me!”

Meetings in the next several weeks will finalize the next steps for the Southeast and Southwest Stations and their offices from Lake Charles to Dulac to New Orleans to Buras. As additional assessments are completed, the area welcomes more volunteer teams. Ongoing information will be posted to the Louisiana Conference web site. In the meantime, financial gifts to UMCOR Advance #3019695, Hurricanes 2008, will help UMCOR and its partner conferences provide immediate on-the-ground support and begin and continue long-term recovery.

For more information about the ongoing Louisiana Conference Disaster Response Ministry, go to the LA Storm Center web site. Volunteers are needed for 2009 and beyond.

To learn more or to volunteer, visit UMCOR partner web sites below.

UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief)
UM News Service
Mississippi Conference
Louisiana Conference
Texas Conference
Alabama-West Florida Conference
Disaster Recovery (formerly Rita Recovery)

Our Work

Dale Kimball is the Station Manager of the Southeast Station of the Louisiana Conference Disaster Response Ministry.
Photo by Susan J. Meister/UMCOR

“THE MOST VALUABLE GIFT”

It was a typical Monday morning – I stood before sixty plus eager volunteers of all ages. One young lady stood out of the crowd because of her youthful appearance and radiant smile. As I conducted the orientation, I commented several times how nice it is to have young people, like the young lady sitting in front of me, from high schools and colleges around the country volunteering in Louisiana.

At the end of the orientation, she approached me and said, “I want you to know that I’m 26 years old, a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, I just returned home from Iraq two weeks ago, and I will be headed back to Iraq for a second tour next month.”

As I went about my week, our paths crossed from time to time and the same thought kept coming to my mind – why would this young person, who spends most of her time 14,000 miles away from her home and family, choose to spend a full week of her time volunteering in Louisiana? I’ve seen 58,000 volunteers come and go during the last three years, I’ve heard dozens of testimonies, but this young lady’s motivation intrigued me.

By week’s end, my curiosity got the best of me. On Friday afternoon, I saw this young lady one more time and so I asked her, “Why are you here when there are so many other things you could be doing with your limited time stateside?” She answered without a moment’s hesitation: “Because I believe that the hope and promise that volunteers bring to Louisiana every day is every bit as important as the hope and promise American soldiers stationed abroad bring to foreign nations. If my time here makes a difference, then this is where I want to be.”

- adapted from a Advent devotional meditation by Dale Kimball, station manager for the Southeast Station of the Louisiana Conference Disaster Response Ministry

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