New Orleans Mission
Holy Trinity's New Orleans Trips
Holy Trinity enjoys a relationship with Saint Anna's Episcopal Church in New Orleans, which has offered our HTP youth group hospitality and spiritual retreat on its "urban adventures." In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Holy Trinity continues to offer financial assistance to this Ninth-Ward parish that has after the storm constantly updated its programs and outreach to meet the changing needs of the city. Included in St. Anna's ministries are the Mobile Medical Unit, the Latino Apostolate, and a musicians ministry.
Holy Trinity also works through the Office of Disaster Response of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana in ongoing recovery programs. Our earliest trips were involved with gutting hurricane-damaged homes. Our more recent trips have been managed by the Rebuild Program that works with a variety of clients who, for various reasons, have no other resources for returning to their homes.
What:
Seven volunteer groups from Holy Trinity, Decatur, have traveled to New Orleans since October 2006. These groups have varied from two to eighteen members.
When:
The most recent trip was June 11-14, 2009.
How:
Our trips have left Decatur early on a Thursday and returned on Sunday. It is possible to make arrangements to go early or stay longer. With one exception, when we used a loaned bus from Holy Comforter Parish, we have traveled by private or rented cars.
Where do we stay?
Several Episcopal churches in New Orleans have made arrangements for volunteers to sleep in dormitory accommodations – acceptably comfortable cots, with each volunteer providing his/her own sleeping bag or sheets and blankets, and always with interesting shower arrangements. These accommodations are available to us at a cost of $10.00 per person per night, to help defray the costs of this service. Our reservations for 2009 are for Charlstrom House, connected to St. Andrews Episcopal Church in the Carrollton area.
Where do we eat?
We provide our own breakfasts, pack our own lunches to take to the job sites, and enjoy New Orleans' great restaurants for dinner. The churches where we have stayed have made basic kitchen accommodations available and we usually make a number of grocery store runs.
What do we do?
The volunteer needs are changing in the city, as some of the ministries from immediately after the hurricane are no longer running. Our recent projects have been in the Rebuild program, and new ministries and opportunities are in development. We have also worked with projects at St. Anna's, our partner parish, including service on the Mobile Medical Unit. In the Rebuild program, construction skills (or a willingness to be trained in those skills) are extremely valuable.
Please call Dot Moye at 404.377.2116, or e-mail davismoye@bellsouth.net with any questions or for more information. Please sign up for regular e-mail updates on trips.
Read the Online Journal from St. Anna's Episcopal Church
St. Anna's in New Orleans has created "Anna's Journal," which is sent to parishes all over the country who have supported hurricane relief efforts in this community.
 |  |  Share
|
