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Bayou Liberty Relief going to Haiti

Sat, 01/30/2010 - 13:13 — Niki

As everyone knows, Haiti is in desperate need of help. Bayou Liberty Relief is working with other groups to get supplies to groups on the ground. We will keep you informed as we gather more information.  One group we know we will be working with is Burners Without Borders.  Please check their website to see the great work they are doing.  In Peace and Caring, Niki and Ken  http://www.burnerswithoutborders.org/

Making some changes

Mon, 04/30/2007 - 19:31 — Niki

Our website is undergoing some changes at this time. Over the next few days we will be adding new links to Organizations and Projects currently working in Mississippi and Louisiana for folks to volunteer their time, creativity and strength. Residents can also find some assistance by contacting any of the Organizations in their area. We will also be posting articles to keep you informed as to the struggle and achievements of so many Families and Communities through out the Gulf. You are invited to post your thoughts or add comments to any article about what is happening in the Gulf related to Katrina. If you are a Volunteer, please share with us your experiences, pictures and where you've worked. If you are a Resident of the 'Zone' we welcome you to write about your experiences as well. On our News page we will post articles related to important issue to all of us such as housing, education, health care, and our environment.

Broken Promises to a Broken Gulf

Thu, 04/19/2007 - 09:57 — Niki

Published: April 17, 2007

President Bush has reneged on his promises to Katrina’s victims. Shamefully, the president has chosen the interests of bureaucracy over those of American towns on the brink of failure.

Over a year and a half later, there are 64,000 people still sleeping in trailers in Louisiana and far too many communities without schools, hospitals and other basics. These are unacceptable failures. At least part of the problem is a law that requires states to contribute 10 percent of the cost of most federally financed reconstruction projects. Mr. Bush waived that requirement after the Sept. 11 attacks (as his father did after Hurricanes Andrew and Iniki) but he refuses to do so for the Gulf Coast.

Official to tell senators decisions are needed to rebuild

Thu, 04/12/2007 - 10:51 — Niki
GAO investigator to speak at hearing
Thursday, April 12, 2007
By Bruce Alpert

WASHINGTON -- A congressional investigator is expected to tell senators today that rebuilding efforts along the Gulf Coast are at a critical turning point, with key decisions needed soon from the federal government about funding for coastal restoration, levee protection, infrastructure, land use and rebuilding the area's economy.

The main message of Stanley Czerwinski, director of Strategic Issues for the Government Accountability Office, likely will be that a lot has been spent on Gulf Coast Recovery, but much more probably will be needed.

He's scheduled to be the lead witness today at the first hearing of the newly created Senate Home Security and Governmental Affairs Disaster Recovery Subcommittee, chaired by Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La. The GAO is the investigatory agency for Congress.

Update from United Peace Relief

Sat, 03/10/2007 - 15:00 — Niki

Hi all,

Our website has been updated recently and United Peace Relief still
has a presence in the gulf doing what we can. We have several
projects in the works and need your help.

Help us support reconstruction in the Gulf Coast and disaster relief.
We are very excited about our raffle of this beautiful quilt
celebrating New Orleans and Mardi Gras. We want to thank Laura Fogg
who created the quilt and donated it to United Peace Relief for this
raffle. Laura is an award-winning quilter from Mendocino County. You
can see some of her other beautiful quilts here

Website Initialization

Tue, 02/27/2007 - 01:06 — ken

# Uploaded Drupal version 5.1 to Siteground host.

# Drupal 5.1 online.

# Fancy Theme added. Only glitch is lack of colored menu items.

# Menus duplicated from previous version website.

# Image galleries setup. Only 1 picture per area tested.

# Blocks enabled like previous version website.

# News category created and tested.

# TinyMCE editor installed and finally working. This one took awhile.

# Fixed image upload. Works now.

# Added Events calendar to left sidebar.

Ken

As houses rise in Phoenix, the saws sound sweeter than ever

Fri, 02/02/2007 - 01:00 — Niki

Source: Oxfam  Date: 02 Feb 2007

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the Rev. Tyronne Edwards was on a mission—just as he has been pretty much every day since the storm surge from hurricane Katrina sloshed over the levees in his tiny town on the east bank of the Mississippi River. When the water receded—it had been 14 feet deep—there wasn’t much left of Phoenix, La: Out of 166 homes, barely 25 or 30 of them were habitable.

But on this day—with a power saw whining and the sermons of the late civil rights leader blaring from a pair of speakers—Edwards nudged his little community and lifelong home one step closer to recovery. By the time the sun had gone down, he and a small crew of helpers, including his 15-year-old son, Sadiki, had put the finishing touches on an office at one end of an old mobile home that is morphing—yet again—into a new nerve center for Phoenix.

New York photographer help N.O. kids put their world in focus

Wed, 04/26/2006 - 00:00 — Niki

By Lynne Jensen                 
Staff writer

Dancing down the aisle of historic St. Augustine Church in Treme, the Rev. Jerome LeDoux punched the air, singing "Shake the Devil Off" as Nikon-toters recorded one of his last moments as pastor. Among them was Aaliliah Carr, 9, joined by fellow photography student Niya Zulu, 8.

While other photographers are recording New Orleans' bleak, post-Katrina landscape, Jim Belfon is focusing on its storm-struck people, especially young people yearning to see their world through the lens of a camera.

Belfon, whose love of photography blossomed during the heyday of 1950s jazz, is the executive director of the Photographic Center of Harlem, where he has helped children learn and appreciate photography for 18 years. He plans to set up a similar center in New Orleans, where he has taken up residence, to help youngsters investigate photography as a recreational activity, an art form and a career choice.
<>

Kevin Curley--A good friend and neighbor to the community

Fri, 02/10/2006 - 10:41 — ken

Like most of us, I sat in exile watching the news chanels as my beloved home town went underwater. Like most of us I got angry, sad, and frustrated by the needless suffering of my less fortunate neighbors. And I knew we still had no idea what the truth was, and we may never.

But I knew I was changed and my search for the truth was intensified. I came back to the destruction, in a funk(not the good kind)and I wandered around in confusion trying to pick up the pieces, realizing I had way too many to pick up, the bayou would have to wait. Then a series of connections, that took way too long to proceed, began.

The evolving effect of these conections is an incredible group of truth seekers, helping me, my piece of the bayou, and my community heal. I couldn't be more amazed, pleased and humbled by the resolve and commitment of strangers to come here to make a difference, and this difference is so complex, First Les, Franklin, then Lyn on the phone. Then came Niki, Ken, Carol and Mike on the bayou. And along with a colorful contingent, among others Iggy, Meg and Ivan, they recaimed the place.

On the Bayou

Thu, 02/09/2006 - 20:00 — Niki

                                   Canoeing on the Bayou

My Son, Justin, came to work with us in early December 2005 for a week. He found the wrok so meaningful and the company of Vollies so pleasent, he stayed another week! We went canoeing on Bayou Liberty the night before he returned home to Oklahoma. Thank you Justin for your hard work and great company!

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