Southwest Texas UMs respond to Katrina

Southwest Texas United Methodists have scrambled last week to help survivors of Hurricane Katrina.
Immediately after the Category 4 storm hammered Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and West Florida Aug. 29, church members collected money, assembled supplies and prepared volunteer teams to help with rebuilding.
But after Sept. 1 the emphasis shifted to aiding thousands of people evacuated from Louisiana to Austin, San Antonio, Victoria and other Southwest Texas cities.
The first of 25,000 evacuees arrived in San Antonio Sept. 2. Austin began welcoming some 5,000 displaced people Sept. 3.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas was managing cases of 400 patients moved to Methodist hospitals in San Antonio from flooded medical centers in New Orleans. The healthcare organization was working through the Southwest Texas Conference to house families of those patients at United Methodist facilities around San Antonio.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries arranged for 35 evacuees—10 adults and 15 children—to stay at Mount Wesley Conference Center in Kerr-ville. Those people arrived from New Orleans early Sept. 3.
The Rev. John P. Feagins, San Antonio District Volunteers in Mission coordinator, scheduled a “how to help” meeting for San Antonio church members September 8th at the United Methodist Center.
“The purpose of the meeting is to present opportunities for volunteer actions to leaders of the 63 United Methodist churches of the San Antonio District and to refer volunteers to the appropriate agencies and organizations where action is already taking place,” Feagins said.
The meeting included presentations by representatives of the American Red Cross, Methodist Healthcare Ministries, the Southwest Texas Conference and other responding organizations.
Tom Marsh, San Antonio District United Methodist Men president, recruited several teams of church members to work six-hour shifts last week at Red Cross shelters in San Antonio.
Don Jones, Southwest Texas Conference disaster response coordinator, reported the need Sept. 2 for hygiene items and other supplies at KellyUSA in San Antonio. The former Air Force base was the initial destination for 25,000 evacuees.
Jones urged United Methodists around San Antonio to take new towels and wash cloths, hairbrushes, bars of soap, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, diapers, baby formula, single-size bed sheets, pillows and pillow cases to the San Antonio Disaster Resource Center. The center, run by the Greater San Antonio Interfaith Disaster Recovery Agency, is in an old Albertson’s grocery store on North St. Mary’s Street at U.S. 281.
Jones and Susan Hellums, conference Volunteers in Mission coordinator, asked congregations Sept. 1 to assemble flood buckets and health kits for the United Methodist Committee on Relief. The committee will need the supplies for Hurricane Katrina cleanup in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.
Hellums was arranging collection points at various sites around the conference. She planned to have a truck take the flood buckets and health kits to the relief committee’s Sager Brown Depot in Baldwin, La., later in September.
“While flood buckets are not on the top of the list today, they will be needed soon to replace stock in Baldwin,” Jones said.
The Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley, 2601 Zinnia, McAllen, was the collection site for churches in the McAllen District. Items delivered there must be labeled for UMCOR “Hurricane Relief,” Hellums said.
In Austin some 60 people from various denominations attended the Sept. 2 organizational meeting of an interfaith disaster response organization, reported Fritz Parker, Austin District disaster response coordinator. The group was being formed to work with the 5,000 evacuees expected from Louisiana.
In Victoria First UMC accepted responsibility for preparing breakfasts and lunches during September for evacuees. More than 100 were staying in a Red Cross shelter at Victoria Airport.
The 1,364-member Victoria congregation began preparing food at the church and delivering it to the airport Aug. 31. The United Methodists are recruiting volunteers from other Victoria churches to help with the effort.
In Rockport, members of First UMC—and others—dispatched a 24-foot rental truck filled with baby clothing, diapers, bedding, toys, nonperishable food and bottled water and other items to the Victoria shelter Sept. 1.
“We thought this would be a one-day effort,” said the Rev. Thom C. Elliott, pastor of the 473-member congregation. “But with this response, I think we’ll be doing this for a while.”
The Rockport congregation also collected $3,000 for the United Methodist Committee on Relief’s hurricane response.
In Schulenburg and Weimar, United Methodists were helping community groups provide clothes and meals to hurricane evacuees staying there, said the Rev. Mark Adams, pastor of First UMC, Schulenburg.
First UMC, Boerne, collected hygiene items for displaced people in Seguin, church secretary Sandy McKenney reported.