KATRINA DISASTER RELIEF ORGANIZATIONS UPDATE 09/16/05

Important Instructions - call or e-mail these organizatios to make
sure that they are still in opperation before sending items. We will
try to post additional material as soon as we receive additional
information or changes. - Norma J. - September 17th 2005

The Full story with links updates, etc. can be found here at the
following websites:

http://www.normajbodycare.com/Love/katrina_1.html
http://www.normajbodycare.com/Love/network_1.html
normajskincare@yahoogroups.com
normajskincare-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
africanwoodcarving@yahoogroups.com
africanwoodcarving-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

From: William D Bryant [mailto:wdb23@...]
Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2005 6:09 PM
Subject: RE: Website for additional places working on Katrina relief



Thank you, Dr. Ellen.

This is a wonderful listing, It's interesting because I was also
watching on the news about the monies are being caught up in the
beaurcracy. And the Red Cross is trying!




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From: Anderson, Ellen M [mailto:Ellen.Anderson@...]
Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2005 5:37 PM
Subject: Website for additional places working on Katrina relief

Alternative options for the relief effort:

As often happens in big disasters, huge enterprises like the Red
Cross and the Salvation Army and others get the bulk of the money
raised (the Red Cross has already raised over $350 million).
Sometimes these big operations do not have the nimbleness or the
understanding of the local community to apply the aid in the smartest
and most strategic way. That's when we have to trust the people we
know, and the local grassroots groups that have been serving their
communities for decades.

What follows is one list of 10 great things happening in response to
Hurricane Katrina. These are deserving places for your support,
whether it is to give housing, use your tech skills, volunteer or
give hard cash.

1. American Friends Service Committee (via veteran reporter Doug
Ireland): "If you'd like to make a donation that will actually help
the poorest citizens of New Orleans, Biloxi, and the many small
Southern towns devastated by Katrina, you should do so through the
American Friends Service Committee. They've established a special
Hurricane Relief fund. The AFSC was founded by Quakers in 1917 to
provide conscientious objectors with an opportunity to aid civilian
war victims. It's still Quaker-run, and its sterling history of
agitation and education for peace is matched by its long record, for
nearly a century, of lean, effective, on-the-ground service to
victims of war and famine. A gift to the AFSC won't be wasted."

2. NAACP disaster relief efforts. Juan Proano explains that the
NAACP, America's oldest civil rights organization, "is setting up
command centers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama as part of its
disaster relief efforts. NAACP units across the nation have begun
collecting resources that will be placed on trucks and sent directly
into the disaster areas. Also, the NAACP has established a disaster
relief fund to accept monetary donations to aid in the relief effort.
The NAACP has chapters and members throughout the disaster area, and
is intent on getting relief to those most in need at the grassroots
level. "

Send checks payable to:
NAACP Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund
4805 Mt. Hope Drive
Baltimore, MD 21215
Donations can also be made online at:
https://www.naacp.org/disaster/contribute.php

3. Cindy Sheehan and Veterans for Peace. From Michael Moore: "Join
with me in bypassing the colossally inept and incompetent Bush
administration and get help DIRECTLY to the people of the New Orleans
area -- right now. Many don't know who to trust. I have a way,
though, for each and every one of us to do something that can affect
people's lives TODAY. I've been working with a group that, I
guarantee you, will get direct aid to the people who need it most.
Cindy Sheehan, the brave woman who dared to challenge Mr. Bush at his
summer home has joined The Veterans for Peace set up camp in
Covington, Louisiana, on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain. They are
accepting materials and personally distributing them to those in need
and are going to be delivering much-needed supplies." Needed now:
paper plates, paper towels, toilet paper, baby diapers, baby wipes,
baby formula, Pedialyte, baby items in general, powder, lotion, handy
wipes, sterile gloves, electrolytes, LARGE cans of veggies, school
supplies, and anything else to lift people's spirits. Visit
VFPRoadTrips.org for instructions on shipping these things, or
driving them there yourself.

4. Help ACORN get on its feet again. ACORN, the most influential
organization in the U.S. in fighting for low-income people is really
hurting. From Allison Conyers: "Our headquarters in New Orleans has
been destroyed. Now we are fighting to relocate and aid the more than
9,000 member families we have there. We have members in Houston who
are taking in many families and are now organizing a van tour that
will pick up goods from cities all over the country. We need support
to open a temporary national headquarters in Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
and, when possible, reopen our offices in New Orleans. As we get up
and running, we will gather together our displaced community members
and work to help secure the housing, community services, and other
relief they need. All of this will be expensive, so please consider a
contribution to the ACORN Hurricane Recovery and Rebuilding Fund."

5. Help people reconnect. PeopleFinder is a volunteer-driven
database project attempting to compile all of the information
currently found online -- from official Red Cross databases to
Craigslist lost-and-found postings -- into one central repository,
and to republish that information in a way that will be easily
searchable and amendable to existing databases. From Zack Rosen,
founder of CivicSpace Labs: "I was stunned by the response they
received when the project was launched on Friday. By Saturday, we had
around 100 developers working on the various pieces; by this
afternoon, volunteers have processed over 60,000 records of
information. I haven't ever seen anything like it." They're expecting
to have the search functions finished by the weekend, and will be
working with the Red Cross and FEMA to finalize some of the
implementation.

A number of technicians at Community Wireless Rapid Response are
putting together a low-powered FM radio network, and are in need of
radio equipment donations. They need 10,000 radios and the batteries
to run them ASAP. They're also working on setting up WiFi and other
wireless communications, and are based out of Houston. Equipment and
techies in that area are needed.

Air America Radio's Public Voicemail, 1-866-217-6255, is a way for
disconnected people to communicate in the wake of Katrina. Here's how
it works: Call the toll-free number above, enter your everyday phone
number, and then record a message. Other people who know your
everyday phone number (even if it doesn't work anymore) can call
Emergency Voicemail, enter the phone number they associate with you,
and hear your message. You can also search for messages left by
people whose phone numbers you know. Air America Radio will leave
Public Voicemail in service for as long as this crisis continues. You
can call it whenever you are trying to locate someone, or if you are
trying to be found. Air America Radio brings you Emergency VoiceMail
in conjunction with VoodooVox.

6. Supporting local foundations and organizations. From Sara Van
Gelder, editor of Yes Magazine: "Here are some local groups who need
donations to enable them to provide immediate disaster relief. These
groups come well-recommended by trusted sources as organizations with
a long-term commitment to stricken areas and a strong track record of
making a difference."

o The Enterprise Corporation of the Delta and the Hope Community
Credit Union will use donated funds for immediate relief, and then
help people rebuild their homes and businesses in the distressed
communities in Louisiana and Mississippi where these not-for-profit
organizations have been operating for a dozen years.

Enterprise Corporation of the Delta
222 North President Street/Suite 200
Jackson, MS 39201
Phone: 601-944-1100; Toll-free: 1-866-THE-DELTA (1-866-843-3358);
FAX: 601-944-0808
Email: info@...

o The Baton Rouge Area Foundation is estimating that as many as
half a million displaced people may be in Baton Rouge for up to six
months. The foundation's Hurricane Katrina Displaced Residents Fund
is seeking funds to assist with housing, food and basic necessities
for these hurricane refugees. A second fund, Hurricane Katrina New
Orleans Recovery Fund, will help those who return to the Greater New
Orleans area get back on their feet. The Baton Rouge Area Foundation
is a non-profit community foundation comprised of over 300 charitable
funds.

Baton Rouge Area Foundation
402 N. Fourth Street
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802
Phone (225) 387-6126
Toll-free 1(877) 387-6126

7. Housing offers. MoveOn has the largest housing network operation
running so far, and the Louisiana state government has endorsed it on
their site (note that all housing shelters listed for the state of
Louisiana are listed as full). From Noah T. Winer: "In the face of
the enormous tragedy unfolding in the Southeast, the response from
MoveOn members and the general public to our volunteer housing
efforts has been amazing and heartwarming. Since last Thursday,
offers of over 150,000 beds have been posted at hurricanehousing.org,
with over 50,000 of those spots in the Southeast. ...

Over 1,500 people have responded to the postings, seeking housing for
11,000 hurricane victims -- even as most relief organizations are
still focused primarily on saving everyone they can from the most
immediate dangers. With over a million people displaced, we expect
that the housing offered so far will be snapped up."

8. Preventing local non-profits from getting marginalized. From
Drummond Pike at the Tides Foundation: "In the past, Tides has
established Rapid Response Funds for emergencies (Hurricane Mitch,
9/11, and the recent tsunami). In each case, we have used the funds
to fill in the gaps where progressive organizations, community groups
or underserved populations are left marginalized by the larger relief
programs. That is our intent here. We expect that the bulk of the
funds will be used to support the recovery of nonprofits that have
served the Gulf States for years. Once on their feet, these groups
will be one of the best ways to aid displaced people in dire
straights. Second, we will be looking for ways to help undocumented
immigrants and others often left outside government and Red Cross
sponsored programs.

Tides Rapid Response Fund for Hurricane Katrina Relief and Rebuilding
has been established for our friends to easily make contributions.
You can make an instant online donation to the fund by clicking the
DonateNow button at www.tidesfoundation.org/RR_0905.cfm "

9. Supporting the AFL-CIO Union Community Fund's special Hurricane
Relief Fund. Donations will be targeted to meet the most critical
needs among working families. From the Rocky Mountain Peace and
Justice Center: Those of us fortunate to be outside the hurricane's
path must help and we must help now. The AFL-CIO's Union Community
Fund has established a special Hurricane Relief Fund that will target
help where it's needed most by working families. We are working with
the labor federations in affected states and with relief
organizations to make sure your contributions help brother and sister
union members whose lives have been turned upside down. Please click
on the link below to make your tax-deductible contribution
now:https://secure.ga3.org/08/UCF_Katrina_Relief

The Union Community Fund -- "labor's charity for working families and
communities in distress" -- is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity.
Donations to the Union Community Fund are tax-deductible to the
extent provided by law.

10. Supporting the local progressive union community coaltion. From
Van Jones, executive director, Ella Baker Center for Human
Rights: "Community Labor United (CLU), a coalition of the progressive
organizations throughout New Orleans, has brought community members
together for eight years to discuss socio-economic issues. We have
set up a People's Hurricane Fund that will be directed and
administered by New Orleans' evacuees. The Young People's Project, a
501(c)3 organization formed by graduates of the Algebra Project, has
agreed to accept donations on behalf of this fund. Donations can be
mailed to:

The People's Hurricane Fund c/o The Young People's Project
99 Bishop Allen Drive
Cambridge, MA 02139

If you have comments of how to proceed or need more information,
please email Curtis Muhammad, muhammadcurtis@...

Don Hazen is the executive editor of AlterNet. Cindy Gantz and Deanna
Zandt provided research for this article.

From Website: http://www.alternet.org/story/25177


Dr. Ellen M. Anderson

Food and Drug Administration

Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition

Staff College

301-436-1798

Ellen.Anderson@...



Hi Clark, more relief groups to add to our list. Norma J
www.normajbodycare.com