LCS and TCF lead relief trips to New Orleans over spring break
Alex Blum
Issue date: 3/26/07 Section: News
Both the Leonard Carmichael Society (LCS) and the Tufts Christian Fellowship (TCF) led trips to New Orleans over spring break this year to help with the city's long recovery from Hurricane Katrina.
The LCS trip, coordinated by senior Preston Dickey, connected 24 Tufts students with the American Red Cross and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), a national group that advocates for low and middle income communities.
Four of the five days of the LCS trip were spent in Saint Bernard Parish, one of the parts of New Orleans most devastated by Katrina. While there, they repaired houses and did on-site assessments.
"We were going around, on site, in St. Bernard Parish trying to assess people's recovery status and helping them essentially connect with case workers so they could find the funding necessary to rebuild," Dickey said.
Dickey also found work for the group through Tufts connections. "We have a pretty good alumni network in New Orleans, so they really helped us find work while we were down there," he said.
Junior Tim Boire, who also went on the trip, said that it was a valuable experience. "I had never been to New Orleans. It definitely feels good knowing you are making a good use of your time," he said.
Despite doing hard labor for several days, the students remained energetic. "It was a long week and we were working a ton, but people would sit around for hours just telling their stories of what they heard from Katrina survivors they met that day," Dickey said. "No one could say enough."
"It was really disheartening to hear [about] people still struggling to get funding to move back into their houses," Boire said.
As a result of the trip, both plan to do more to help with the recovery process. Dickey plans to move to New Orleans after he graduates, and Boire would like to return.
Still, Dickey said that a lot more can be done. "I don't think we are having enough discourse on Katrina, or more broadly, how the government deals with disasters in America or internationally," he said.
The LCS trip, coordinated by senior Preston Dickey, connected 24 Tufts students with the American Red Cross and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), a national group that advocates for low and middle income communities.
Four of the five days of the LCS trip were spent in Saint Bernard Parish, one of the parts of New Orleans most devastated by Katrina. While there, they repaired houses and did on-site assessments.
"We were going around, on site, in St. Bernard Parish trying to assess people's recovery status and helping them essentially connect with case workers so they could find the funding necessary to rebuild," Dickey said.
Dickey also found work for the group through Tufts connections. "We have a pretty good alumni network in New Orleans, so they really helped us find work while we were down there," he said.
Junior Tim Boire, who also went on the trip, said that it was a valuable experience. "I had never been to New Orleans. It definitely feels good knowing you are making a good use of your time," he said.
Despite doing hard labor for several days, the students remained energetic. "It was a long week and we were working a ton, but people would sit around for hours just telling their stories of what they heard from Katrina survivors they met that day," Dickey said. "No one could say enough."
"It was really disheartening to hear [about] people still struggling to get funding to move back into their houses," Boire said.
As a result of the trip, both plan to do more to help with the recovery process. Dickey plans to move to New Orleans after he graduates, and Boire would like to return.
Still, Dickey said that a lot more can be done. "I don't think we are having enough discourse on Katrina, or more broadly, how the government deals with disasters in America or internationally," he said.
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Sara Albee
posted 3/27/07 @ 9:46 AM EST
I work at ACORN - Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now - and would like to thank all the volunteers from LCS and TCF for coming down to New Orleans and gutting homes. (Continued…)
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