Missing Persons

chiquita simms here i want to work with heidi in atlanta. i dont know who else is working with her. ia m also working with terry to publish data from atlanta to texas... 

chiquita simms, 770.803.0402 

divadend@bellsouth.ney

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My name is Ruby Johnson, I cannot find my niece Lillie McGuire Antoine, she just brought a house in the 2500 block of N. Dorgenois in New Orleans and she was employed with University Hospital. Her cell number is 504-722-2531. I have been calling that number but we're unable to get through. I made it safe to Fort Worth Tx. Please call 817-346-4719 if you have any info. on the where abouts of Lillie McGuire Antoine. Please help me find Lillie she's more to me than a niece, we were raised as sisters.

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This is Jalene Mack. My maiden name is Stuckey. I am looking for my stepfather Percy Devine. He is about 82 years old and was last located at the VA Hospital in New Orleans. Have not been able to located him or contact him since the day before the storm I believe. If someone knows about him please call me at 281-788-9494 or my mom Carolyn Devine at 832-754-4001.

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I am the daughter of the late Charlie Bering who was a producer at the Jazz and Heritage Festival of the Night Concerts Dept. for 20 years. He and my mother Lula Lowe Lewis owned Lu and Charlies on Rampart Street in New Orleans during the 70's - Kent and Kidd Jordan and countless others played there. My father owned Charlie B's a nightclub on Convention Center Boulevard in the early 90's. I am safe in Florida with my mother but am unable to find my boyfriend Alfred Clayton, Jr., his mother Doris Clayton and his sister Thomasina Clayton. When I last spoke to them on Wednesday water was beginning to rise in their home at 2111 Amelia Street which is near Louisiana Avenue. Can you please post this to your website? I can be reached at 850 434-2397 or via e-mail at celu73@aol.com

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I'm looking for my brothers and sister Michael Johnson - from N.O. East - Virginia Keys & Family from Denver, Co - Call jean 501-312-9000 Rm 422

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my name is Claire Carew and I have been trying to locate Dr. Hal Weaver who I visited in New Orleans sometime back. Please write.

Claire Toronto Canada

carewclaire@hotmail.com

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Dear Brothers and Sisters in Helping Professions,

I know you are all busy with many tasks in the aftermath of Katrina...and the National Association of Black Social Workers may already be dealing with this issue.  I don't know.  However, please seriously consider my request:

Prior to December 15, 2005 write to your congressmen to urgently request introduction/support of new federal legislation and policy change that will

pay with federal dollars for the continuing mental health treatment of POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS SYNDROME and DEPRESSION and related illnesses ( as well as continuing education) for children, adolescents and young people 25 years of age and under victimized by Katrina 2005. 

Soldiers returning from zones of trauma have access to mental health benefits and continuing education through the Veterans Administration. Our children and young people deserve no less!

I thank each of you for reading this email and passing it on to your friends, families and associates. 

Sincerely,

Jeannette Drake, LCSW, MFA

Mental Health Survivor 

www.jeannettedrake.com

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I am a Pastor from New Orleans who is currently in North Dallas. A small group of us have formed a transition coalition for those persons who will be living in the North Dallas/ Plano area for whatever amount of time. We have clothing being sent in, a job search team going and temporary housing opportunities. Please have the persons call me at 504-442-1578 or 972-442-7015. Pastor Joe Connelly, United Methodist Church

Rev. Dr. Joe D. Connelly

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Rudy,  Thank you for keeping up with and keeping on top of vital information.

Sincerely,

Dorothy

drice2@richmond.k12.va.us

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Story of Surviving Katrina

Here's the story of how my mom survived Hurricane Katrina this week. My sister-in-law and I saw my mom on WFAA Channel 8's news getting off a bus in Mesquite, Texas. My friend Sabra and I rushed there to get her. Sabra was also looking for her father-in-law who was separated from his wife. His wife ended up in Houston, Texas. We were told to go to the Dallas Convention Center to get her. My mom never showed. I even volunteered all night with hopes of seeing her at some point. I started at 6:30 p.m. last night, and ended at 8:30 a.m. today. Today we learned the elderly were separated from the regular population.

Early this morning my brother, sister-in-law, and sister were looking for her in  shelters in Fort Worth, Texas, and San Antonio, Texas. I continued searching for my mom as every bus came in Dallas. It was tiring, the stench started to rub off on my clothes, but I just couldn't give up. The evacuees were in need and I thought I could help them to get medical attention as they came in.

Yesterday I noticed the busses had written numbers on the windshield. The first number I recalled seeing had 60 on it. The last one I saw at 8:30 a.m. had 90 on it. The busses were moved in and out as quickly as possible. I'm afraid there won't be much room left at the Dallas Convention Center. My husband Donald had to ask someone to give up an inflatable mattress to an elderly woman.

I'm glad to report my mom's on her way to Dallas via Greyhound bus. She should arrive after 6 p.m.

Sabra's father-in-law arrived this morning at the Convention Center too.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Janice F. Moore

JFAYEMOORE@aol.com

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I finally made contact with my mother and 2 cousins.  Thanks to a stranger they were able to use his cell phone and call.  They were in the New Orleans Airport and  awaiting departure to San Antonio, Texas.  They seem to be hopeful and in fairly good spirits. 

I would like to share their story of what occurred in their retirement community after the hurricane. 

Dee Thompson

Dee.Thompson@mms.gov

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Hi all,

I just got off the phone with Monique, who is in San Antonio.  She is a fabulously strong and humorous person--I wish you all could have heard her stories.  I will try to give you some of the highlights:

First of all, names:  There were 170 people in the building, but she doesn't remember a lot of their names.  She would know their faces, though, as they got to know each other quite well.  The people she could name, who went to the Langley Air Force Base in San Antonio with her to be "processed" were:  Mary Grace Lemew, Brenda who has a son in North Carolina, Jim Talbert who is trying to get to Jacksonville, Kristin who is in her 60s and a retired school teacher, grandma Kehoe, and a 96 year old mother who had lived in San Francisco before.

She says she believes everyone got out of the building.  There was one man, Peter, who was 95 and was refusing to go because this was his home and he had nowhere else to go, but the manager said she was going to try to make him leave (but that was after Monique left).  She does not believe that anyone died in the building, as they did go around and knock on all the doors at a certain point and did start working together.  (More on that later.)  

A FEMA boat took about 11 people, those with the most health problems, yesterday around 3 or 4 pm and said it would come back.  The man who needed dialysis was on that boat, but she's not sure about who the others were.  When the FEMA boat didn't come back later that night, the rest of the residents made a plan to head out the next morning.  Around 10am today the rest of them left and headed to City Park.  Those who were too frail to walk, like one 88 year old woman who left with them, were driven to the park in the manager's van.  There were 2 double amputees with them.  

Little by little they were picked up by helicopters and taken to the New Orleans airport which was "like a third world country."  "The despair in the airport was worse than it had been in our building."  No order at all.  They would call for people to get in lines and people would just rush in, there was no way to know who had been waiting for 4 days and who had just gotten there.  She was lucky to get on a flight to San Antonio and arrived there at 5:45pm today

So those are the basics.  Hopefully everyone really is out, and we'll hear more soon!

Now some details:

The original hurricane didn't blow out any windows, but did take off screens and damage the roof, so the 7th floor folks had water leaking through their ceiling.  At some point they all started working together and she said everyone was great.  They held regular meetings, they took turns with the flash lights.  Each floor had a captain, so that if any of the residents were too frail to get information or food, the captain was responsible for getting it to them.  

Jerry, who ran the restaurant, opened it up and got everyone food.  He said, "I don't have enough food to give everyone 3 hot meals a day, but everyone is going to get at least 1 meal a day."  Vonzel, the manager, really "stepped up to the plate" and helped take care of everyone and make sure things got done.  (We really need to get in touch with her and thank her some day!!)  Unfortunately the whole building pretty much ran out of food and water yesterday, which is partly why they decided to walk out today.

And there was a lot of bad news.  There were dead bodies in the water outside.  (Our families are going to have some serious post-traumatic stress disorder--we need to get everyone into counseling!)  There was one body that had been caught between the fence and trees outside for 3 days and "you could smell it from the 5th floor."  There were snakes and rats in the flooded water outside and were starting to come in.  The water was up to the 2nd level of the local police station. 

They felt like their own little island.  Someone who had walked from Orleans Avenue came by and told them, "If you walk to the New Orleans post station you'll get picked up."  She thinks yesterday 500 people were still waiting there.  They were slowly being taken to the interstate.  She thought about leaving but it was too scary to walk in the water because of snakes, rats, dead bodies, and the fact that you couldn't tell the depth--she's short and was afraid she'd take a step and just fall in over her head. 

They could hear the helicopters over their heads but no one ever stopped.  It really seemed you had to be stranded outside of a building to get any attention.  They started waving sheets outside of windows to get attention, and one helicopter captain looked her in the eye and gave her the thumbs up but had to keep going.  Today was the first day they really broke down and cried.

But they had some fun, too.  In order to get the attention of the helicopters, Monique got white sheets and made signs for the roof:  "170 people inside" and "Don't land here--roof unstable" and "Need food, water, phone...and a good man if he's available" !! (:  And they spent hours planning the hurricane reunion party--who would make the martinis, who would cook what, etc.

It was an incredible story, and we talked for nearly an hour, before she even took a shower!!  She is an amazing woman, and I'm sure she was a great source of strength and comic relief for our family members.  Hopefully we'll all meet her in person someday, at that big hurricane party...

I've been away from e-mail now for too long, so I'd better get back to it...

Michele

Michele Gomez

michelegomez@earthlink.net

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School Websites with information for Students, Faculty , and Staff

Check out UNO “Open Letter to Students, Faculty and Staff ” http://www.uno.edu/ will have on-line classes by October and regular classes in the fall. There web site is up with basic information

And  check out SUNO http://www.suno.edu/

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Remembrances of Liberia, Africa

Hi Rudy,

I am caught up right now, but I want to let you know that your grief is my grief, and I need to visit ChickenBones tonight to find out how I can contribute my little penny to the relief work. The tragedy in New Orleans and Mississippi brings back fresh memories of the civil war in my country, Liberia. The images of dead bodies all over the city, helpless mothers who cannot feed their children, elderly being wheeled around or left on the side of the road to die, people abandoned in their own country continue to live with me, and to see them revived in America is beyond me.

Blessings and peace to you always, and please send me information.

Patricia

Patricia J. Wesley

pjw14@psu.edu

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Patricia, peace and blessings,

nice to hear from you. I can imagine the stress these scenes might evoke.

Aristide implied as much in regard to his countrymen:

"The grieving faces that we see so resemble the grieving faces of Haitians—who have faced similar waters that swept away lives and engulfed tiny boats overloaded with people fleeing the political repression following the coup d’etat/kidnapping of February 29, 2004."

and a Kenyan newspaper said as much:

Ambrose Murunga in Kenya's Daily Nation

My first reaction when television images of the survivors of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans came through the channels was that the producers must be showing the wrong clip. The images, and even the disproportionately high number of visibly impoverished blacks among the refugees, could easily have been a re-enactment of a scene from the pigeonholed African continent.

I recommend as far as donations that you

Check out Rootsblog (http://rootsblog.typepad.com/rootsblog/) for list of black relief organizations

As ever and always, Rudy

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updated 4 November 2007