September 23 Update:

• We have 350 open disaster cases. In addition to CCDBR case managers, we also have 7 virtual case managers from around the country helping us work through the cases.
• We have completed outreach to 17 FEMA TSA hotels in our Diocese hosting evacuees. As of 9/20, there are 917 evacuees in FEMA TSA hotels throughout our Diocese.
• We’re reaching out to 3 FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers in our Diocese where survivors are going to access benefits.
• We successfully transitioned 58 people out of shelters into more permanent forms of housing.
• We are planning a trip to Chauvin to drop off much-needed supplies, such as water, shovels, diapers, MREs, tarps, and generators, to that area.

September 16 Updates

How We’ve Helped:

• Church Parish Assistance:
  • St. Margaret, Albany: Clean up buckets, food, gift cards, water, baby items, cleaning supplies, tarps, and generator.
  • St. Joseph, Ponchatoula: Clean up buckets, generators, water, and tarps.
  • St. Joseph, French Settlement: Clean up buckets, generator, and tarps.
  • St. Joseph, Paulina: 2,000 households received hot meals, gift cards, flood buckets, non-perishable food, pet food, generators, diapers, water, and tarps.
  • St. Helena Catholic Church: Generators, tarps, and food.
  • Holy Ghost, Hammond: Tarps and food.
  • St. Michael, Convent: Water, toilet paper, and diapers.
  • Mater Dolorosa, Independence: Clean up buckets, generators, and water.
  • Bayouland Churches, Labadieville, Plattenville, Napoleonville: Gift cards, generators, and tarps.
  • St. Marks, Gonzales: Gift cards.
• Shelter and Community Outreach:
  • Arranged for 58 people to leave shelters and return to permanent housing by providing bus tickets, gas cards, and Uber rides.
  • River Center shelter: Clothing, underclothes, socks.
  • River Center is closed. Most residents left are going to mega shelter in Alexandria.
  • St. Helena Parish: hot meals, gift cards, non-perishable food, pet food, generator, diapers, water, fresh food, paper products, meat perishable dry goods, and alcohol wipes.
    • Distributed more than $10,300 in items to residents.
    • Distributed gift cards to PACT families with young children.
  • Convent Housing Complex: Diapers, food, and diapers.
  • Assumption Parish Shelter, Napoleonville, arranging for people to leave the shelter.

How We’re Currently Helping:

• Case Management:
  • Case managers working 290 open cases. Assisting people with applying for FEMA and FEMA-approved hotels.
  • Continuing to field calls from people in need. Most need gas cards and hotel rooms.
  • Implementing a virtual case management program with the CCUSA network from across the nation.
• Shelters:
  • CCDBR case workers onsite at the 2 shelters in our Diocese.
  • Filling gaps in services such as providing bus tickets / gas cards for people leaving shelters, special shoes for diabetics, walkers, and canes for elderly / disabled, etc.
  • Distributed clothing in partnership with DBR in River Center.
  • Working on distribution event at Lamar Dixon.
• Immigrants:
  • Coordinating a distribution event for immigrants next week, specifically tarps.
  • Distributed flyers with hotline number and assessed needs in immigrant communities.
  • Assessing needs of our immigrant clients.

How We’re Planning to Help:

• Monitoring GOHSEP, MOHSEP, Louisiana VOAD, and Capital Area VOAD daily calls.
• In contact with every church parish in Diocese, assessing needs and distributing items in the hardest hit areas.

How You Can Help:

• Ida caused heavy damage in the Northeast US. As we’ve seen in the past when two areas are heavily hit, this causes competing disasters. It is now more important than ever for neighbor to care for neighbor locally.
• Shelter residents need money, generators, gas cards, bibles, diapers, wipes, hygiene items, housing, tarps, pillows, new underwear, and new socks.
• Volunteers who can drive a trailer/truck and run a pallet jack. Needed Monday – Wednesday, 8 AM – noon.
• Volunteers who can drive a 26-ft box truck with lift gate.
• Volunteers who can lift, push, and pull more than 50 lbs.

September 8 Updates

Big Picture: Overall, we’ve provided over $360,000 in goods directly to those in need in less than a week.

Church Parish Assistance:

• St. Margaret, Albany: Clean up buckets, food, gift cards, water, baby items, cleaning supplies, tarps, and generator.
• St. Joseph, Ponchatoula: Clean up buckets, generators, water, and tarps.
• St. Joseph, French Settlement: Clean up buckets, generator, and tarps.
• St. Joseph, Paulina: 2,000 households received hot meals, gift cards, flood buckets, non-perishable food, pet food, generators, diapers, water, and tarps.
• St. Helena Catholic Church: Generators, tarps, and food.
• Holy Ghost, Hammond: Tarps and food.
• St. Michael, Convent: Water, toilet paper, and diapers.
• Mater Dolorosa, Independence: Clean up buckets, generators, and water.

Shelter and Community Outreach:

• Case managers working 185 open cases. Assisting people with applying for FEMA and FEMA-approved hotels.
• CCDBR case workers onsite at the 7 shelters in our Diocese.
• About 1/3 of Ida’s shelter population were housed in the civil parishes of the Diocese of Baton Rouge at one time.
• Filling gaps in services such as providing bus tickets / gas cards for people leaving shelters, special shoes for diabetics, walkers, and canes for elderly / disabled, etc.
• Convent Housing Complex: Diapers, food, and diapers.

Needs Assessment:

• Continuing to field calls from people in need. Most need gas cards and hotel rooms.
• Assessing needs of our immigrant clients.
• Monitoring GOHSEP, MOHSEP, Louisiana VOAD, and Capital Area VOAD daily calls.
• Working with Catholic Charities USA to deploy virtual case managers to assist.

Still Needed:

• Ida caused heavy damage in the Northeast US. As we’ve seen in the past when two areas are heavily hit, this causes competing disasters. It is now more important than ever for neighbor to care for neighbor locally.
• Shelter residents need money, generators, gas cards, bibles, diapers, wipes, hygiene items, housing, tarps, pillows, new underwear, and new socks.
• Volunteers who can drive a trailer/truck and run a pallet jack. Needed Monday – Wednesday, 8 AM – noon.
• Volunteers who can drive a 26-ft box truck with lift gate.
• Volunteers who can lift, push, and pull more than 50 lbs.

September 3 Updates

Church Parish Distributions:

• St. Margaret, Albany: water, baby items, cleaning supplies, tarps, and generator.
• St. Joseph, Ponchatoula: water.
• St. Joseph, French Settlement: generator to serve meals.
• St. Joseph, Paulina: 1,000 meals, non-perishable food, flood buckets, water, and tarps. Partnering with British Petroleum, Lamar Advertising, and BR Food Bank.

Shelter Distributions:

• About 1/3 of Ida’s shelter population is housed in the civil parishes of the Diocese of Baton Rouge.
• CCDBR case workers onsite at all 12 shelters throughout Diocese.
• Diocese shelter population increased 30% as shelters are being closed throughout South Louisiana.
• Distributing critically needed items such as prescriptions, bibles, durable medical equipment, and activities for children.
• Opened 120 cases.

Needs Assessment:

• Continuing to field calls from people in need. Most need gas cards and hotel rooms.
• Assessing needs of our immigrant clients.
• Monitoring GOHSEP, MOHSEP, Louisiana VOAD, and Capital Area VOAD daily calls.

Still Needed:

• To-go boxes for St. Joseph in French Settlement.
• Shelter residents need money, generators, gas cards, bibles, diapers, wipes, hygiene items, housing, and tarps.
• Ida caused heavy damage in the Northeast US. As we’ve seen in the past when two areas are heavily hit, this causes competing disasters. It is now more important than ever for neighbor to care for neighbor locally.

September 1 Updates

OVERVIEW:

Hurricane Ida made landfall on Sunday, August 29. On August 30, Catholic Charities staff started working. We found out every civil parish in our Diocese sustained damage. Although gasoline is hard to come by and most of our staff are still without power, we have started working in the shelters, assessing needs, and taking phone calls.

This is a Katrina-like event in that we will be helping to rebuild the lives of people in our own Diocese as well as evacuees who cannot return home. We’ve learned a lot since Katrina and are in this for the long haul.

Assessing Needs:

• Assessed the needs of our staff members. A few had minor damage. Two staff members, who live in LaPlace and New Orleans, have relocated out of state. One team member will stay at one on our housing programs. We are still seeking housing for the other, who is a female.
• Minor roof damage at one of our buildings. The main office on Acadian never lost power.
• Fielding calls from people in need. Most need gas cards and hotel rooms.
• Assessing needs of our immigrant clients.
• Monitoring GOHSEP, MOHSEP, Louisiana VOAD, and Capital Area VOAD daily calls.
• Sending staff into shelters to assess needs.
• EBR population doubled, like Katrina.
• Receiving calls from people housing others that have needss.

Donations:

• Offers of in-kind assistance are starting to pour in:
  • Tarps from Lamar Advertising
  • Food for the Poor
  • CCUSA
    • Asking for assistance from CCUSA network for virtual and in-person case workers
  • Knights of Columbus
  • BR Food Bank
  • Baton Rouge Clinic
  • British Petroleum
    • Providing 500 meals at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Paulina on Sunday, September 5
  • Various other unaffiliated groups
• Applying for grants from:
  • BCBS Foundation
  • CCUSA
  • ExxonMobil
• The link for donations directly to the agency is live: donatenow.networkforgood.org/hurricaneidaccdbr.

Shelters:

• Focusing on the 12 shelters currently open in our Diocese.
• Ascension Parish OEP requested caseworkers at Lamar Dixon shelter.
• Staff at River Center and FG Clark shelter in Baton Rouge assessing needs.
• Lamar Advertising providing tarps to the Lutcher Senior Center shelter.

Volunteers:

• Receiving volunteer offers from:
  • Junior League
  • Christ the King
  • individuals
• Utilizing Spanish-speaking volunteers to help answer phones and shelter support.
• In need of volunteers to keep agency and key staff vehicles gassed up.