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What have you done, or plan on doing to help with Hurriacane relief?

Andra130

Member
What have you done so far to assist in the relief effort? What ideas can you share for people who want to get involved? You can do more than just send money.... here is what I posted in the Katrina info thread:

"Just as a suggestion, there are other kinds of support to give other than monetary. I personally am serving aboard the USS Bataan and we are just outside of Biloxi, Mississippi flying in supplies with HM-15's MH-53 helos. We have recieved a few letters of encouragement from civillians and it helps with the morale since the Bataan and HM-15 were supposed to be going home from a month long det near the Panama Canal. Morale is low since we dont get to see the faces of the people we help. Myself personally, I got engaged to be married just two days before they called me and told me to pack my bags. I am very excited to be getting married, but it is hard to be here away from James. So basically the morale of the story is that all the people out there helping not only needs supplies in the form of donations, but words of encouragement as well. Heck, send some cookies to the relief workers!! They are working under conditions of urban warfare trying to help people, some of which are very ungrateful. I am supposed to be on the flight schedule in the next few days to go out and help hump supplies and it will be a blessing to be able to see the faces of the people that we have been in support of. Here is the web-site for the Bataan in particular if anyone want to send a shout out: www.bataan.navy.mil/ We appreciate it. Stay safe!":help: :help:
 

Feathers in Hair

World's Tallest Hobbit
(Just as a reminder, we've got a lot of people on this site who prefer that their generosity and help remain anonymous. Let's be sure we recognize them as well!)

That said, it doesn't mean you have to remain quiet. Telling us what you've done or what you would suggest might spark someone else to help!
 

Mister Emu

Emu Extraordinaire
Staff member
Premium Member
Well tomorrow I am going to talk to the red cross to see if I can go down there to volunteer...
 

Jaymes

The cake is a lie
Yesterday I donated a few dollars as my friend and I were setting up our table at the flea market. I wish we'd donated more, but we needed to keep most of the cash we had on us at the time so we could give people change. I looked around for places to donate after we packed up, but I didn't see any or any signs or anything for it. Is there a Red Cross 'center' or anything to physically go over and hand money to? (I don't have the ability to do so online anymore)

And sorry, I just woke up (yes, at 4 am. My internal clock is WAY off...); where do I go to send a shout out? I'm looking at the webpage and it's just not clicking. :eek:
 

Mister Emu

Emu Extraordinaire
Staff member
Premium Member
Jensa,

On the American Redcross page, when you click volunteer, on the sidebar(left-hand side) there is a place to put in you zip code, do so and it will show the closest Red Cross office/building/whatever, you could then physically take the money there.
 

michel

Administrator Emeritus
Staff member
Apart from a bit of money, there's not much I can do - my arms are too short!:eek:
 

Jaymes

The cake is a lie
Thanks Mister Emu :) (You know, I keep trying to abbreviate your name as Mr Emu. Dang office classes!)
 

Mister Emu

Emu Extraordinaire
Staff member
Premium Member
Your welcome Jensa, and don't worry about abbrieviating it... doesn't affect me none.
 

martha

Active Member
Hi there, sorry I've been away for a month working on my CD and visiting other places online. I missed you all very much!

I was sitting in my nice air conditioned apt, with a cool drink at my hand and just about to get supper on the table. I was watching the fund drive in my area by Ch 4 news. Suddenly it hit me just how unbelieveably fortunate I was. The tears flowed and I headed for my credit card. I pledged what I could. Oh well what's another bill. I've got plenty of them.
I have much more than many people. I have my health, a place to live with all the creature comforts, I have a car (that I can't afford to drive, for the price of gas), I have all of my senses, I have a job, I have the love and friendship of my fellow beings. How in the world could I not give something.
These poor people are suffering in extreme conditions. When your whole town is wiped out, you can't even go back to work, there is no building. It just boggles the mind. This is going to have a tremendous impact on their lives. Think of the elderly and the children.
If you are going to send provisions perhaps it would help to mentally go through your daily rituals. Think of everything that you use every day and then send those things.

These are our people, right here in America. Nobody does it better than the American people when push comes to shove. No offense to those of you who are from another country. I'm just being the cheerleader.:)

Blessings to you all and blessings to the victims and volunteers.
 
I have donated money and clothes and blood. I also donated time at the local red cross phone center to take donations. Those are a few options you can take to help out.
 

Engyo

Prince of Dorkness!
Members of my family and our Buddhist sangha have been volunteering at the Astrodome, George R. Brown convention center, Food Bank, and other places; as well as donating food, water, supplies and clothing. Here in Houston we have a multiplicity of opportunities to aid victims of Katrina, and we have been working both though our little sangha and through our different places of employment, etc.

We are also planning (as a sangha, or community of believers) to offer to provide meditation classes and services at any shelter whose residents desire this, as well as offering spiritual counselling and support to any Buddhists who so identify themselves to authorities. I will be contacting the Red Cross to make this offer later today, and will let you know how this works out.
 

Andra130

Member
It is awesome to see such support for the relief effort. My squadron has been fortunate in that we have helped with both Tsunami relief and Katrina. I have heard many a person say they just dont feel like they are doing enough, but all I can say is if you could only see the person that uses the hygenie kit that YOU put together, or eats the food that YOU helped to pay for by donating to one of the various charities. It is hard when you dont see it head on, I will hopefully be lucky enough to get to land and do some hands on work myself.
I just hope that over the next few weeks as news on the disaster becomes "old" and fades that we remember that there are still little tradgedies going on all over the world.... the Sudan for instance. I am personally going to start donating 5% of my pay to a charity every pay day. It may not be alot, but for someone it could mean the world.
As for a shout out to the Bataan send emails to this address: [email protected]
I believe that is the person responsible for posting the messages on the website.
Again, keep it up!
:clap
 

Feathers in Hair

World's Tallest Hobbit
I don't know if I should post. I really admire those that are keeping their contributions private... but gosh darnnit, I'm so excited about it!
 

Katzpur

Not your average Mormon
Andra130 said:
What have you done so far to assist in the relief effort?
So far, I've made a monetary contribution (through my Church's Humanitarian Fund). But I plan to do more. As some may know, many of Katrina's survivors have been flown out of state to "refuge camps" (for lack of a better phrase). As strange as it may sound, arrangements have been made for them to be relocated (either permanently or temporarily -- it's up to them) in four states outside of Louisiana. One of these is Utah. Not exactly what one would expect. Utah has long been considered an excellent choice for refugees to come, although in the past, these refugees have come from foreign countries.

At any rate, we expect at least 2000 "guests" to arrive within the next few days. Several hundred (close to a thousand, I believe) are here already and are being housed at Camp Williams, an army base just outside of Salt Lake City. This evening my husband and I went down to be trained in disaster relief and will be notified sometime within the next few days as to when we should show up at the shelter. We're supposed to work 12-hour shifts and we haven't yet figured out how we're going to manage that, since both of us have full-time jobs. I suppose we'll probably ask if we can work weekends. We're looking forward to the experience, though.

I can't imagine how I'd feel having my home and all my belongings completely distroyed, not knowing where my grown kids, my mother or my sister were, and then being shipped off to North Dakota or Connecticut or Arkansas. These people have gone through pure hell and now they're in Utah of all places! I just want to help them realize that we care and want to help them in any way we can.

Kathryn
 

Andra130

Member
Darkdale said:
I've made donations to the Red Cross and am practicing strict energy conservation.
OOOh good one!! Reminds me of WWII. Conserve to Serve!!! Especially since gas prices are so freakin high these days, many people probably dont have much of a choice.
:bonk:
 

Unedited

Active Member
I haven't done anything yet actually. I feel so bad. I've been saving up to buy this book I wanted, but I think I'll donate the money instead.
 
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