Churches faithful to Gulf Coast rebuilding 

Even after the unprecedented hurricane disasters of 2005 have disappeared from the media, the churches have shown an unswerving determination to help restore damaged churches and homes.

Last August, 50 volunteers from 14 churches took part in Ecumenical Work Week sponsored by the National Council of Churches’ Special Commission for the Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast. This year even more volunteers are expected to respond to Ecumenical Work Week 2008, August 17-23 in New Orleans. Registration information can be found by clicking on the box on the right.

Last year, volunteers reported that the cleaning, hammering, scraping and painting was the hardest work they ever loved. The work took place in New Orleans and Biloxi, Miss. In addition to the six houses the workers helped to repair and rebuild, the helped to point out the ongoing need for volunteers and the work done by church volunteers and organizations in the areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina two years ago today.

In a survey conducted by the Special Commission of the NCC's 35 member communions it was estimated those churches sent more than 120,000 volunteers. They donated 3.6 million hours in helping victims put their lives back together. Those churches sent an estimated $250 million in financial aid to local churches and relief agencies. The survey was compiled by Tronn Moller, the Special Commission’s Gulf Coast consultant.

"The Road Home has been a bureaucratic nightmare," said Bishop Thomas Hoyt, co-chair of the Special Commission and past president of the NCC.

He said the money sent by government agencies has not been shared equitably among the victims nor has it been managed properly. The Rev. Michael Livingston, former NCC president, co-chairs the Special Commission with Bishop Hoyt.

"The task ahead is still a mammoth one," said Bishop Hoyt. "We need people to stay with us." More volunteers are needed to help people struggling all along the Gulf Coast, Hoyt said.

In Biloxi, the volunteers worked to repair two homes, including the home of Myrtle Davis. She was born in the house 81 years ago as was her brother who will be 85 next month.

During a lunch break the workers heard from representatives of two dozen different organizations. The message from each was please keep sending volunteers. They warned of a pending housing crisis if the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) begins to evict residents of FEMA-supplied trailers. The temporary housing was designed for only 18 months to 2 years.

At a Tuesday night prayer service the Rev. Dr. Bob Hill, pastor of Community Christian Church in Kansas City, Mo., preached following a tour of the Lower Ninth Ward. In describing his emotions he said he felt angry but did not share that out loud until he realized, "anger is always an appropriate response when our values have been violated."

Bishop J.D. Wiley of Life Center Cathedral in New Orleans and the Rev. C. Dan Krutz, executive director of the Louisiana Interchurch Conference in Baton Rouge, La., also preached at nightly prayer services.

While much of the media attention leading up to today's anniversary has focused on the Lower Ninth Ward, volunteers also saw other neighborhoods where little seems to have been done in two years. Gentilly, Lakeview and New Orleans East, were also areas the workers saw that are still struggling to rebuild and virtually uninhabited.

In addition to the work of the 50 volunteers, visiting clergy spent two days on a listening tour about the environmental impact of the post-Katrina flooding of this city and what still needs to be done in the area. The tour was coordinated by Cassandra Carmichael, NCC's director of eco-justice programs.

The Special Commission has issued a report card on the status of recovery efforts. After more than a half a dozen post-Katrina trips to the Gulf Coast region and extensive on-the-ground analysis, the NCC's Special Commission on the Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast gave low marks across the board to local, state and federal governments. The report card reviewed response and rebuilding efforts in the city of New Orleans, the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and the federal government in areas such as transportation, healthcare, housing, schools, insurance, and environmental justice.

The NCC's Special Commission was formed in September 2005 in response to the spiraling neglect present in the Gulf Region after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Commissioners representing NCC member communions convened for the first time in Louisiana in November 2005, a few months after the storms ravaged the Gulf Coast, to analyze on-the-ground progress post-Katrina. The Special Commission has since toured the Mississippi coast, met with religious leaders and community activists and government officials in New Orleans and Mississippi, including Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. In addition, the Special Commission has met with members of Congress and officials at FEMA about efforts to rebuild.

The ecumenical work week was organized for the Special Commission by Moller and the Rev. Leslie Tune, NCC's associate director for justice and advocacy. Work projects were coordinated through the United Church of Christ disaster relief, Episcopal Disaster Relief and Disciples of Christ Disaster Relief in New Orleans. In Mississippi the work was coordinated with Episcopal Disaster Relief.

"It was not a sacrifice for us to be there. It was an immense honor and privilege to be the hands and feet of God and to help people rebuild," said the Rev. Tune. "It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life that people allowed us in their homes and trusted us to help them get things back in order."