Question for Gulf Coast residents who were affected by Katrina

[Horse with no Name]

What can common everyday people do to help YOU?
What still needs to be done for YOU?
What do YOU still need?
I've given money but of course am unsure if any of it got to it's intended location.
I've donated clothing and furniture but think that all the people that benefitted from them actually relocated.
I want to DO something to help REAL people who are on the coast. What needs done the most?

[EFerrari]

1. Good question.

kick

[acmejack]

2. Kick

[babylonsister]

3. HwnN, here's

another group you might want to post your question in, and it's a good one!
I hope you're feeling better. :hug:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=360

[Horse with no Name]

5. Thanks a bunch babylonsister

It surely has to get better...:)
I want to do something--would love to do a road trip down to help Merh...but not sure what needs to be done.

[HeeBGBz]

9. Let me know if you go.

I'm moving back down there in April or May.

It would be cool if we could locate specific needs in the area and work on them in a more personal level.

You know, like if people could list their needs online, like anysoldier.com. Except there would need to be some sort of verification if they were for real and not scammers.

[Horse with no Name]

10. Is your land cleared off?

See things like this would be great to get a group of DU'ers to go specifically and help out folks.
That is what I would be interested in.

[HeeBGBz]

11. I have no land. I was a renter.

I will be bringing a camper trailer with me. I could be a available body if we decided to do something. That's part of why I'm coming back. I need to give something back to the rebuilding since I was lucky enough to survive relatively intact.

[HeeBGBz]

12. I wonder if Merh needs a clean-up crew?

Or any others who lost homes or with land damage.

[NanceGreggs]

4. Kicked!!!!!!

And recommended - let's hear from the people who KNOW!

[EFerrari]

6. We need some takers here.

:)

[satya]

7. I've been wondering the same thing. Waiting to hear responses. nt

[Horse with no Name]

8. The way I see it

The holidays are behind us...the weather is getting nicer out, good time for some old fashioned barnbuilding.:toast:

[satya]

28. I've fantasized about rebuilding the lost neighborhoods, a sort of Habitat

for Humanity meets Extreme Home Makeover. Sadly, I have no construction skills. But I could probably do cleanup and fetch things.

Sounds like they might need people to stand in front of bulldozers: Bulldozing the Dead in New Orleans

[pitohui]

32. we DON'T need people to stand in front of bulldozers

please don't stand in front of a bulldozer unless you have talked to the homeowners and you are certain they don't want their home bulldozed, don't talk to self-appointed lawyers who are trying to make a name, talk to the homeowner of that house

the people i've talked to NEED their totalled homes bulldozed

you understand if you stop FEMA from bulldozing a spoiled home for free, the homeowner will have to pay $4-5K -- that is four to five THOUSAND dollars -- to have it bulldozed privately?

i don't know what these people are playing at, but what they are doing are extremely hurtful and even an extra expense of a few thousand more dollars after losing everything can be enough to put someone into bankruptcy or even make them consider suicide

now if you want to operate a bulldozer, i know some people who haven't been able to get their homes on the FEMA list for bulldozing who might be interested!

[rudy23]

13. I'm a little north of the Gulf Coast,

right on the fringes of the damage. I really don't know what physical goods are needed the most right now.

Just PLEASE don't let this story slide off the radar. I don't think we'll ever get that independent investigation, but writing your congressman and asking for one is a good start. Just stay tuned to the stories and blogs coming down the wire, and keep paying attention.

www.nola.com is the site for the N.O. paper, the Times Picayune. This is a GREAT resource for info about what's still going on there.

There are still thousands "missing" from the area. Cameras were not allowed when FEMA did the body counts, but everyone I know who went to New Orleans to help said there were WAY more than 1,000 floating in the water. They're still finding people 3 months after the fact.

Don't ever forget the bizarre lack of urgency this government showed in saving the lives of those victims. That trucks of water were turned away from people who had suffered in the 98 degree heat, and saw the sun rise and set 4 times before they got any help. Remember how quickly the media, Sean Penn, and Jesse Jackson got there--2 days.

There is still MUCH investigating to be done. Still more investigating as far as the contracts, the demolition of the 9th ward, the rebuilding process, the rebuilding of the levee etc.

Please also, don't forget how the coast of Mississippi bore the brunt of the damage. They've been overshadowed by the attention to N.O., but they need support. Check out the newspapers, and look out for some discussion forums where you can voice your support.

Keep your eyes on the ball, and don't forget that New Orleans is the largest port in the US, and the 4th largest in the world. Even emotional support helps now, since every other day we get to hear about how N.O. should be bulldozed, how god punished the city for sinning, how everyone there just wants their "handout", etc. THANKS!

(and pull for the Saints next year with either Matt Leinart or Vince Young at QB!)

[Horse with no Name]

14. Thank you for your input

and welcome to DU.
I feel like a lot of folks would like to help, they just don't know what or where.

[fooj]

18. I would be one of those folks.

Asked Merh and she just said that we need to keep everyone aware of what is going on (which is nothing) and not to forget them. I've asked what I could do on an individual basis and my feeling is that there is soooo much to do that it's hard to say where to start.

Peace.

[usedtobesick]

15. I am going down there the 2nd and 3rd weeks of February

and working in Gulfport to do whatever is needed. The below link takes you to a volunteer website that can put you up in the tent city and feed you and keep you gainfully working to help the local people. Intheflow is going next week for 5 months to work in counseling survivors in the tent cities and FEMA trailer parks in the area. It is church directed but you don't have to be part of any church.

I talked to Merh about helping her or people she knows. She said she would look around for us.

I am driving from Denver CO starting the 8th of Feb. I have access to a large motor home if I can find a place to park it.

http://www.christusvictordisasterresponse.org/long-term-volunteers.html

[bettyellen]

16. k + r

[pitohui]

17. getting laborers is a bee-yatch

i now have my insurance money but as far as what do "i" need, what i need is a work crew

if i can't get (legal) workers in a reasonable amount of time, i'll get family & friends & just FORCE them to take payment

so i don't want to take advantage of your kind offer because there are many people who are not able to get a fair insurance settlement, and many who don't even have insurance, i would prefer that you direct your attention there first

there are just too many people ahead of me, with much greater damage, and some have had their entire extended families wiped out, so don't have families outside the area who can chip in if all else fails

so why post -- well, for two reasons --
1) to let you know that a major, major need is skilled or even unskilled labor
2) to give you a kick and make sure everyone affected sees your terrific post

if you have time and physical strength to donate, you will find plenty to do and if you can help out someone in the DU community that's super-cool, if you are not able to connect w. someone at this site, you might consider volunteering a week at habitat for humanity

even if you are not physically able to do this, just keeping the issue in front of people is a help

your many posts on the topic over the last few months have been noticed and it IS appreciated

oh, one note -- at this time, clothing is NOT needed, the amount of clothing donated has overwhelmed the ability of the charities to store and distribute it, it's actually better to keep shitty old clothing to work or paint in that you can throw away at the end of the day's work

[Horse with no Name]

20. So how much work do you have that needs to be done?

If you had a weekend work force of 15-20 people--how big of a start would that be?

[pitohui]

22. it would be overkill but WOW!

we've done a lot of it already, the remaining work is probably 2 days max for 2-3 professionals, of course more than that for amateurs, but we've hit a wall of doing everything we already have the skills to do ourselves

however, i do know people for whom a team of that size would be a big help AND make a difference to them financially and i'm very tempted to ask around on their behalf, but let's see if actual DUers need your assistance first

[Nikki Stone 1]

19. My friend in NOLA says: people need their "f-cking FEMA traliers"

"and stop red-taping us to DEATH."

People will have blue tarps on their houses til the cows come home because insurance companies are dragging their feet and not paying for everything they are supposed to pay for.

[pitohui]

21. you tell em, girl

that's what i'm hearing too

i filed a complaint to get my insurance settlement and it was a minor one, low five figures, i did get it, but i was on their ass w. the constant faxes and letters and documentation, most people have a real job

i could tell you tales, most people i know w. serious damage are not even getting enough to replace their roof!

i may have told this before, one friend had a slate roof on a historical home, cost just to replace the roof which was totally blown off the house will be $40K plus the other damage to the home, just remodeled at a cost of $180K

insurance co. says they will pay $26K -- and they haven't even paid that

my friend, who is middle-aged and coming to the end of his career, will be living w. a blue tarp on his roof for a long, long time to come because he lost everything financially in katrina and the insurance money is a joke, his contractor won't even do anything more for $26K

however, as a practical matter, i don't think horse w. no name is in a position to put a tack under the ass of fema or bushco or the insurance companies

for we who live here in inhabitable dwellings, what we can and have done as a practical matter is provide a roof over the head, even if the spare bedroom is just an air mattress

for someone coming from out of town, the most practical thing i think is to help w. labor or even cleaning for someone who can't otherwise afford it

[Nikki Stone 1]

24. My friend in NOLA says that roof estimates are increasing exponentially

"i could tell you tales, most people i know w. serious damage are not even getting enough to replace their roof!"

Apparently roof contractors are upping their estimates (ie gouging) and insurance companies are refusing to pay.

Maybe we can pressure members of Congress to look into the gouging. Then again with this bunch, maybe not. :(

[pitohui]

27. gouging is supposedly illegal in louisiana but...

however, the price of materials and labor is through the roof so some of the increase is justifiable, if gouging is suspected, report it, but it's hard to say if law enforcement will agree with you that actual gouging has occurred

there is no federal law against price-gouging apparently, it is state law

all gouging needs to be reported to the state attorney general

the insurance commissioner's office is overwhelmed but is also helping with problems collecting on WIND damage, which would include roofs (flood damage IS federal, i don't know how to file a complaint abt problems w. flood insurance)

i did file a complaint and got my $$ soon afterward, coincidence, i dunno, but while i think it would be nice to get congress involved, i think a quicker chance of getting help is to go to the state level

some people are also getting their own attorneys rather than waiting for help from insurance commissioner or state attorney general's office because the state is just so overwhelmed and really all i KNOW the insurance commissioner did was send an email

i do think if there are any DUers licensed to practice in louisiana or mississippi who wanted to donate a week or so to helping people craft complaints, etc, this too could be a big help

[pitohui]

23. final 12th night kick

some people in this area may not be able to check the internet tonight, let's kick this again so anyone in need will get a chance to see it tomorrow

[Nikki Stone 1]

25. My friend in NOLA needs a JOB. If you know anyone who needs

a dispatcher or someone who can work with computers some, my friend in Lacombe could really use the job. The job she was supposed to be getting disappeared in the flood and she is left with a $5.85/hr job while she is looking for something else.

A job could really help her. She is a mature woman with a grandson to support.

[pitohui]

26. it's really tough for the women, isn't it?

there are lots of high-paying hourly jobs in the western st. tammany area for those who have construction skills and lots of physical strength but i have seen damn few women on those crews, in fact i think i've only seen one and she was a german (i suspect illegal immigrant)

i'll keep an ear out

[Nikki Stone 1]

29. My friend tried to get on one of those crews but was told flat out

by the contractor that he was "afraid" to have women on the crew because he "didn't want anything bad to happen to the women because of the men."

They were paying $100/day under the table. No taxes.

[pitohui]

30. i saw two women on debris gathering crews today, only two

they were both on the drive between lacombe and slidell, both were very young, very tall women

they are really the first i've seen and i strongly suspect they were daughters or relatives of the contractors

many opportunities here for men but for women discrimination is still a reality

most frustrating

[Nikki Stone 1]

31. I know. And my friend would be a really good worker

Right now, she has this bullshit job that requires her to lift and move all kinds of stuff. She can certainly handle the physical part of the labor.

I just think it's peachy that she gets denied an opportunity because some men might act shitty.