wfn.org | [UMNS-ALL-NEWS] UMNS# 524-Child evacuees find temporary home

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Child evacuees find temporary home through connection

Sep. 21, 2005

NOTE: Photographs and related coverage are available at
http://umns.umc.org.

By Betty Backstrom*

BATON ROUGE, La. (UMNS) - Keith Rhodes, executive director of the
Methodist Home for Children in New Orleans, had planned to take a
relaxing fishing trip on Saturday, Aug. 27.

Instead, that morning Rhodes was rapidly arranging the evacuation of 36
residents and 13 staff members of the home to its sister facility in
Ruston, La., the Louisiana Methodist Children's Home. Hurricane Katrina
was approaching.

"We knew this storm was going to be a serious event," Rhodes said. "The
children prepared for the trip to Ruston, packing three sets of clothes
and medication. We hoped that the storm would take the route of other
storms and veer away from New Orleans, but we were wrong."

The storm made landfall Aug. 29, causing widespread devastation and
spurring flooding in the coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi.

As with previous storms, the children's home in Ruston welcomed its New
Orleans counterpart with open arms. "We all hoped that our stay would be
for just a few days. We hunkered down and waited for the storm to hit.
When the worst happened, we knew our group would be in Ruston for much
longer," Rhodes said.

Officials with both children's homes predict the evacuees could remain
in north Louisiana for up to six months.

Terrel DeVille, president and chief executive officer of the Ruston
home, has worked hand in hand with Rhodes to meet the needs of the
displaced children and staff.

"We quickly realized that we needed more permanent housing for our
guests," DeVille said. "Volunteers stepped in to clean out and renovate
several buildings on the campus previously used for outreach programs or
storage. I can't say enough about the staff, many of whom have pulled
double duty throughout this transition."

Not all of the residents of the New Orleans home are in Ruston. "Our
system is part of a large foster care program," Rhodes said. "Some of
the children are with their families on home passes. Others are
scattered throughout the country with family in cities like Houston,
Nashville and Little Rock."

The children are well cared for but are having trouble adjusting in the
aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. "Their losses are great," Rhodes said.
"Some have lost family members, and others are missing. Many of the
families are not computer savvy and don't know how to search the Web for
their missing loved ones."

In the face of this disaster, the evacuees are fortunate to have this
particular refuge. "The La. Methodist Children's Home is a
state-of-the-art therapeutic facility," DeVille said. "Our staff is well
versed in dealing with children in crisis, and our counselors are
working overtime to help them with their concerns. Everyone is going out
of their way to make the children feel at home and as safe as possible."

The children are familiar with the staff and facility because of
previous evacuations, including one last year during Hurricane Ivan.
"They enjoy it here so much that one 9-year-old didn't want to leave
after the last storm," Rhodes said. "They are more secure here than they
would be in a lot of places."

The staff and teachers at the school have worked hard, but DeVille
stressed that the facility needs more help. "We are interviewing people
right now for extra positions."

DeVille spoke highly of the staff and children who are the newest
residents of the Ruston campus. "This is truly a partnership. Everyone
has been extremely cooperative and has given sacrificially to make
things happen."

Offers of help have also streamed in from members of the United
Methodist Association of Children's Homes. "We've heard from the homes
in Georgia, Pennsylvania and others. Dozens of other agencies have sent
materials and money," DeVille said.

Rhodes, whose wife and twin 19-month-old daughters are with him in
Ruston, is grateful for their situation. However, he suffers from the
same emotional strain experienced by the evacuated children of New
Orleans.

"This is like a nightmare that you just can't wake up from," he said.
"You hope that you can close your eyes, and that in the morning, things
would be back the way they used to be."

One of the realities both administrators are facing is a significant
loss of their donor base. "Of course, a major number of the New Orleans
givers have been displaced," DeVille said. "We in Ruston are also
affected because 8 percent of our donor base is from the Crescent City
area."

Donations to the children's homes may be made to Louisiana Methodist
Children's Home, P.O. Box 929, Ruston, LA 71273-0929. For a non-monetary
donation, contact Jane Ellen Boothe at (318) 242-4638.

Donations to support the United Methodist response to Hurricane Katrina
can be made online at www.methodistrelief.org and by phone at (800)
554-8583. Checks can be written to UMCOR, designated for "Hurricanes
2005 Global," Advance No. 982523, and left in church offering plates or
mailed directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068.

*Backstrom is editor of Louisiana Now!, the newspaper of the United
Methodist Church's Louisiana Annual Conference.

News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.

********************

United Methodist News Service
Photos and stories also available at:
http://umns.umc.org

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