HOTLINE - week of August 29, 2005

Updated August 31, 2005

Responding to what it anticipates may be the largest U.S. relief and recovery effort in its history, Church World Service Executive Director John L. McCullough will visit Katrina-devastated Louisiana from August 31 to September 3, to assess emergency and long-term recovery needs and to meet with area faith leaders.

"Church World Service is particularly concerned about the plight of what we anticipate to be a high percentage of poor people, the elderly, and other vulnerable populations throughout the affected Gulf Coast area and beyond," says McCullough. "Stories of individuals who had to stay in their homes because they couldn't afford to evacuate personify that crisis.

While in the area, McCullough hopes to connect with area faith leaders "to offer immediate support, solidarity and hope."

"With such catastrophic damage," says McCullough. "It will be a while before we know the full extent of lives lost and material destruction, but we can be sure that recovery will take a very, very long time.

"There is no question that the area's faith leaders will shoulder a massive amount of responsibility in caring for those populations and helping them find resources," says McCullough, "at a time when the church leaders themselves may have suffered great personal losses."

CWS's disaster response liaisons are in contact with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials, faith partners, and state Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters, to identify material resource needs and storm-affected areas where CWS will concentrate its efforts.

The hurricane caused extensive damage in southern Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, where strong winds and flooding have damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of homes and businesses. The storm, though downgraded to a tropical storm, has also brought heavy rains and winds to areas to the north, including Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

CWS will respond in other states affected by Katrina, as appropriate, including Florida where CWS disaster recovery liaisons helped more than 40 communities develop capacity in long-term recovery during the 2004 hurricane season.

CWS is urgently seeking funds to assist the most vulnerable families affected by Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast, and is providing an initial 5,000 CWS Blankets and 5,040 "Gift of the Heart" Health Kits for emergency needs of families in the New Orleans area.

Contributions for immediate and long-term needs of Hurricane Katrina survivors are urgently needed. Contributions may be sent through your church or directly to Church World Service, P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515. Credit card contributions may be made by calling 1-800-297-1516 or at www.churchworldservice.org.

It was late in the evening when members of the civil defense and local government officials came to the door of Juana Hernandez Fuentes, with the warning, "There is a hurricane approaching and we are evacuating everyone to a safer area."

At first, Juana thought this was part of the exercise that the Cuban Civil Defense goes through this time every year. Then she realized it was the real thing.

Juana is now staying in an elementary school room in the city of Pilón with all seven members of her family. Her house in "La Marina," in Pilón's coastal area, was destroyed by Hurricane Dennis when it lashed Cuba's coast in early July. She is one of the 57 people remaining in the shelter, until she has a new home to go to. Overall, 56,000 people were evacuated in the province.

"One of our major priorities is to get families whose homes were partially destroyed and with roofs blown away back in their homes as soon as possible," says José Marín, liaison for religious matters of our long-time partner, the Cuban Council of Churches (CIC). CWS is supporting the emergency efforts of CIC through July 2006.

CIC is coordinating assistance to 1,000 families – some 5,000 people. Assistance includes food relief, housing construction and repair, household items, psychosocial programs, livelihood assistance, and other capacity building initiatives.

"Our goal is to provide food for a month to 1,000 families and to senior citizens and pregnant women in Pilón and Niquero, two municipalities in Granma province," says Rhode Gonzales, president of CIC. "This is an area of great need and very far from Havana or other major cities."

Each family will receive 15 pounds of beans, 15 pounds of vegetables, ten pounds of meat (chicken, beef, or tuna), and ten pounds of powdered milk.

In addition, CWS is providing 7,335 "Gift of the Heart" Health Kits, 1,050 Baby Kits, and 6,250 lightweight CWS Blankets for distribution to the families.

Each family will also receive additional hygiene items, sewing kits, sheet sets, and mattresses. In conjunction with local governments, CIC will coordinate and facilitate the reconstruction of 100 homes at about $5,000 per home.

Working in partnership, CWS continues to assist displaced people in Sudan – both in the Darfur region of western Sudan and in South Sudan. In Darfur, CWS is helping to provide shelter, water, sanitation, and supplementary feeding to displaced families and host communities.

In South Sudan, CWS is helping to provide seeds, agricultural tools, and reconstruction assistance to displaced families returning to their home areas following the January peace agreement that ended the north-south conflict. CWS has joined other voices in the international community encouraging the people of Sudan to maintain their commitment to peace.

Your prayers and support - and your participation in CROP WALKS and the TOOLS & BLANKETS Program - make possible these and other life sustaining programs. For information on how to get involved, please call your Church World Service/CROP Regional Office toll-free at 1-888-CWS-CROP, that's 1-888-297-2767.

For information about free loan videos, please call 1-800-297-1516, ext. 338, or e-mail us at: videos@churchworldservice.org.

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