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Hurricane Relief - What Would You Bring?
andyring asks: "In a few weeks, I will be going with a group from my church down to some of the hardest-hit areas in Louisiana and Mississippi to volunteer in the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. We will be there six days, and have 10 people going so far. At this point, I don't know much more than we'll be in either Slidell, La. on the northeast shore of Lake Ponchartrain, or Pass Christian, Miss., right on the Gulf Coast near Gulfport/Biloxi. Not knowing what we'll be faced with, and having somewhat limited room for supplies, tools and equipment (probably a U-haul trailer), what would you bring on a journey such as this? Any Slashdot readers between Lincoln, Neb. and the New Orleans area interested in contributing to our effort, such as donations of equipment/supplies/tools/etc?"
Personally I'd bring...
Food
Water
Shelter (canvas tents, large)
Tools (Tarps, gloves, hand saws, hammers, crowbars)
Large Commercial-grade trash bags
Cheap duffle bags / backpacks
Bicycle(s)
Everything you will need for 12 days, plus everything you will be bringing on top of that to help out. This includes food, water, shelter, fuel, a spare tire for the U-Haul, etc..
The very worst thing you could do would be to arrive there and become part of the problem instead of part of the solution.
It might also help if you got an invitation from officialdom, with some idea of where they think they need to put resources first, so that you maximize your value, and have written official sanction to even be in the area you can show to the guards at the blockades.
-- Terry
Don't bring your bibles. These people need real actual help, they don't need folks coming down there with ulterior motives trying to convert them.
Don't you think maybe there are some folks over there who already are Christians and would like a copy of the bible to replace one that was destroyed?
And bring your Bibles. Be prepared to share the hope that is in you with these people. Feed them, clothe them, give them shelter, and heaven forbid you neglect their spiritual needs.
God bless!
Sorry, but that is simply wrong. It takes little training to clear debris, cut trees and limbs, rip out sheetrock, etc. Yes, you could get hurt, probably just minor cuts and bruises, but it's not much different then cleaning your yard, just on a larger scale. Just don't crawl under downed trees or get near power lines.
I'm not pointing you out with this statement, but the notion that it takes an "expert" to help people is a bad one, IMO. The American way (at least down South, still, and probably in the Mid-West) is to roll up one's sleeves and get to work without waiting for the "authorities" or Uncle Government to arrive.
The original poster will do fine; he will help several families, learn about an area of the country he may never have seen before, learn new skills, and gain a lot of intangibles from the experience. But be a hindrance or liability? Nah...
Neither do you, certainly not one of this size, or you would know people need all the help they can get.
Can you use a hammer? Great, then you can frame a house.
Can you use a shovel? Great, then you can help clean the two feet of mud out of some peoples' houses.
Can you talk to people on a phone? Great, then you can help relay calls to relatives in different shelters or shore up the help lines at utilities' or relief orgs' call centers. You see, most people who really need to can't go to www.fema.gov or the like.
Can you spare some plastic containers/chest-like things? Building materials? Cleaning supplies? Shovels, axes, chainsaws, drills... no clothes please, by the way. We've got quite enough.
Do you know how to build/fix any part of a house? If you do, could you show me and others?
Could we have some jobs? You don't have to be Halliburton to bring business down here.
We need long term help, especially. Medical care, jobs, schools, houses, neighborhoods. The Military just get people off their roofs and make sure they don't starve or kill each other. The Red Cross if for emergency relief, and who knows if they'll share their overly large (70%) share of the donations. FEMA is for, apparently, acting as a political lightening rod and blaming Ray Nagin for everything.
Anything will do. People that "know what they are doing" are doing a shit job of it. People who have seen whats happening and just come down to do whatever they can have done the best job. By far.
Death and danger are my various breads and various butters.
if you seem to help people "to convert them" you're only bringing a bad testimony, like Jehova's Witnesses who seem kind in the beginning, but at the first sight of rejection they run away.
Some christian hints:
For people who believe in God / Jesus, and are in doubt (repeat: IN DOUBT), you can tell them that it was God / Jesus who brought you there. God acts thru kind acts of people. But I'd say it's wiser to let them draw their own conclusions.
It wasn't God who brought the destruction to the people - but the ineptitude of people in the government and those who decided to build a city below sea level. Global warning is the result of greedy men (i.e. sinners) polluting the air, so this makes a good defense against the idea that "God destroyed their houses in his wrath etc etc".
But then again, I'd recommend you to keep silent about this, unless you want to be seen as another one of the bible thumpers out there.
Tolerance (specially towards those who reject christianity) is the sign of a true christian, because Jesus helped the heathens, and was merciful with all.
St. Francis of Assisi, said: "Preach the Gospel. Use words if necessary". The greatest way to preach the gospel is to do what Jesus would do: Love and help those in need. Remember St. Paul's words: If I have the gift of prophecies, but no love in me, I'm useless.
If possible, don't mention christianity at all. Just mention the name of the community if you're asked. Remember what Jesus said: Do not do good deeds and proclaim them over the skies. Don't let your left hand know what your right hand does.
If you don't have a generator (and even if you do), power inverters can be real useful... These things can take 12Volt powr and provide 110 for things ranging from laptops to power tools. This means that they can run off of your car's battery and generator. Xantrex (formerly statpower) is who I know, but there are now many other similar suppliers of these things... They start at about $40, and can be found at places like Radio Shack. They're invaluable when you're mobile/remote/stranded or just plain out of mains power (to steal the british saying).
They range from a tiny 75watt unit that can plug into your accessory outlet, and should handle most chargers and laptops to units over a kilowatt that will probably need to be wired direct to your electrical system (presuming that it's even robust enough to drive the monster at full load).
Once you've got that, I'd also suggest a couple of jell cells, for running things that want mains power when you're in places like a hotel room with no power (you can charge them off of the vehicle power during the day). I wire mine with a 12-volt accessory plug (make sure to put a fuse on it). You can often get them out of small dead UPSs.
You can use them when you're mobile, and after you've placed your larger generators where they're most needed. I first came up with the idea in my tree-hugging days when I needed to charge a video camera battery at a logging protest and the only power I had access to was an RCMP vehicle.
If you haven't already thought of it: communications equipment, including hand-radios. I wouldn't presume that cell phone service id reinstated wherever you're going.
Free Software: Like love, it grows best when given away.
I'm down here in the middle of this mess. I've been helping with rescue efforts. The rescue efforts are over. The relief efforts are, for the most part, over as well.
If you want to help us, the best thing you can do is make sure the media's prototypically-short attention span doesn't waiver from the fact that this area needs help... big help.. not some church group handing out towels.
What we need are people WATCHING THE MONEY that's being spent down here. That's where we need the most help. If we don't get it, New Orleans is going to end up like Iraq... with billions given to politically-connected special interest groups and no substantive infrastructure or improvement. That's the legacy the current administration is doing in the wake of an ADD populace who isn't paying attention.
What we need most are people who are paying close attention to what the feds are doing. The people of the Gulf Coast can deal with things. If you REALLY want to help, be active politically, and insist that taxpayer money goes directly to local communities instead of Halliburton. Right now, a shitload of federal money is going to Halliburton, just like it is in Iraq.
Don't come down here. Get on the phone and call your representatives and demand that the resources dedicated to this area are not squandered away in a plethora of no-bid contracts. That's what's happening now. Everything else is paltry compared to this.
If you really want to help, that's what you need to do. If you want to go on some goofy, fuzzy, feel-good, field trip that won't make any significant difference, go ahead with your other plans. But I sincerely urge you to seriously consider what I'm saying. I cannot stress how important it is. WATCH THE MONEY LIKE A HAWK!! We are going to get screwed if the American people don't pay attention!