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Happening ... in the Local Church
Local Church volunteers making a difference in Katrina recovery
On the scene: ‘Pictures don’t compare to
the real thing’
 Stairs
and a ruined swimming pool are all that’s left of a condominium in Long
Beach, Miss. (Photos by Kevin Cullen) |
 Volunteers
from Indiana walk past a cross toppled from St. Thomas the Apostle
Church in Long Beach. |
 The
“Friendship Oak,” dating back to the 15th century, survived the deadly
hurricane. |
 A
volunteer looks inside one of the ruined buildings of the Long Beach
branch of the University of Southern Mississippi. |
By Kevin Cullen
The Catholic Moment
PASS CHRISTIAN, Miss. — Here are some random notes from a five-day mission trip to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The 32 volunteers were organized by the “Partners in Action” at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, Lafayette.
• During New Year’s week, 1,100 volunteers were reported working on the Gulf Coast. More volunteers, especially those with experience in construction, are always needed.
• One of the younger crew members was Katie Spencer, 13, a student at Wainwright Middle School near Lafayette and a member of the cathedral parish. She learned how to install insulation and hang drywall. “The pictures (of Katrina damage) don’t compare to the real thing,” she said. Katie was accompanied by her godmother, Susan Smith.
• Without the free labor provided by outside workers, many Katrina victims “would never have another home,” said Skip Barrett, of Square Foot Ministry Emergency Relief. He kept tabs on volunteer groups and works to secure grants for construction.
• Every Katrina victim has a story. Debvie Danilson, for instance, left her house before Katrina destroyed it, but her husband and son stayed. Her son later called to say that they were in the attic, with water up to their necks. They escaped through the roof. The building was eventually submerged, and struck by debris. Some furnishings were found in a nearby woods.
• Fleeing homeowners found their doors unlocked when they returned. National Guard troops with locksmith tools searched every room of every house for dead bodies. Corpse-sniffing dogs searched debris piles outside.
• St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Long Beach, Miss., stood close to the beach. It was destroyed by Katrina. Its predecessor, built in 1905 and known as “The Church of the 13 Altars,” was destroyed by Hurricane Camille in 1969. The Parish Life Center, also destroyed, dated to 2002. A new church will be built on the old site, but the parish school will be moved inland, and consolidate with another school.
• Every Catholic church in the Diocese of Biloxi was destroyed or damaged. The total loss was put at $100 million, but insurance covered only $35 million.
• Even 20 miles from the gulf, hurricane damage is evident: trees snapped off, 25 feet above the ground; blue tarps covering ripped roofs; companies advertising debris removal services.
• Large fields have been converted into trailer parks, filled with small, white Federal Emergency Management Agency house trailers. So-called “FEMA cottages” come in many colors, and resemble small New Orleans shotgun houses.
• A popular base camp for volunteers is “Camp Hope” at St. Ann Catholic Church in Lizana, Miss. It was started when volunteers attempted to bring a semi loaded with supplies to the coast, but could travel no further south and unloaded in Lizana.
• 4,000 residences in Pass Christian were destroyed. Often, all that is left is the foundation slab, a set of front steps, and the remains of an in-ground swimming pool.
• Much of the campus at the Long Beach branch of the University of Southern Mississippi was heavily damaged. Its “Friendship Oak,” a huge live oak that is known to have been alive in the 15th century, survived intact.
• Temporary, above-ground sewer lines still can be seen in many neighborhoods.
• After the storm, survivors said, the area was deathly quiet. There was no wind, no insects, no birds. Everything was covered in muck. The next year, sunflowers, pumpkins, cantaloupes and other plants bloomed from seeds carried by the water.
• One woman found two dolphins in her living room.
• Semi trailers full of donated clothing were dumped on the ground at a football field in Pass Christian. Volunteers sorted them and opened a makeshift St. Vincent de Paul Store in a damaged building.
• Catholic Masses were celebrated in a Lutheran church; Baptist pre-school was held in a Catholic school. Jews worshipped in the cathedral in Biloxi after their synagogue was destroyed.
• In Pass Christian, City Hall, Municipal Court and the police station are still in FEMA trailers. The bank was in a trailer for two years.
• New houses are typically built on stilts made of heavy, pressure-treated lumber. Some are more than 15 feet in the air, to provide protection from future water damage.
• St. Clare Church, in Waveland, Miss., is
in a tent. The rectory is in a trailer. Behind the tent are the steps to the
old altar. A sign in the front yard says it all: “Katrina was big, but God
is bigger.”
How to volunteer
Several mission trips to the Gulf Coast are being planned in 2008 by Partners in Action at the cathedral parish in Lafayette. Both skilled and unskilled workers are needed. Non-Catholics are welcome. For more information, contact Linda Gloyeske at 765-474-2174 or slgloy@insightbb. com; or Karen Brand at 765-474-6902 or partnersinaction@ lycos.com. Groups decide how long they want to stay, whether it be a few days or up to two weeks.