 |
|||||||||
 |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
September
5, 2005 
VOL.
43, NO. 15Oakland,
CA
Houston Catholic
parishes
rally to aid arriving hurricane refugees
The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston joined with Houston
Mayor Bill White and major relief agencies, Aug. 31, to mobilize aid for
the more than 30,000 hurricane refugees arriving in the city from temporary
shelters in New Orleans. These refugees join thousands of others who had
already gone to Houston when the initial evacuation order was given Aug.
28.
The American Red Cross is using Catholic churches as shelters and the
local Catholic hospital plans to activate a mobile health unit to serve
those in the shelters.
Annette Gonzales Taylor, archdiocesan communications director, said the
St. Vincent de Paul Society is being inundated with requests for help
and is responding “as quickly as possible.” She said hundreds
of Catholics are volunteering to assist in the relief effort.
Taylor said the immediate need was for non-perishable food, personal hygiene
items, phone and gas cards, gifts cards to clothing stores, and children’s
sleeping bags, pillows, pajamas and crayons and coloring books.
She said the Catholic schools in the archdiocese will enroll displaced
Catholic school students without the usual transcripts and other transfer
papers and will provide backpacks and school supplies.
How long the refugees might remain in the Houston area is not known, but
it could be several months. Some are likely to relocate there permanently.
