First Church in Lake Charles, La., has been hosting volunteer work groups since Hurricane Rita devastated the Gulf Coast in September 2005. Representatives from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Presbytery of South Louisiana, and the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church Disaster Response, Inc. signed a formal partnership agreement in February.
According to the agreement, PDA and the presbytery will provide volunteer labor to work on homes case-managed by UMC disaster response. The volunteers will be housed at First Church in Lake Charles. Although the church has hosted volunteer groups before, the expansion of the volunteer village allows for more groups to come, said Jean Marie Peacock, associate presbyter of the Presbytery of South Louisiana and head of its congregational development and disaster recovery. Up to 30 volunteers can sleep in each of three rooms at the church.
UMC will oversee management of repair and construction sites and will work with homeowners to outline what work will be done and gather approval.
The dedication ceremony celebrated this partnership.
“By working together and being the hands and feet of Christ, we can make a difference and make hope out of chaos,” Peacock said. The partnership between Presbyterians and Methodists has been valuable in the “forgotten area” of southwestern Louisiana, said Kevin Hodge, UMC site manager at Lake Charles.
Although the area has seen the impact of four hurricanes since 2005 — Katrina, Rita, Ike, and Gustav — it hasn’t received as much media attention as New Orleans, Hodge said. But that doesn’t mean the area is without need. In October 2005, the UMC disaster response had 5,000 cases in Southwest Louisiana. Since then, that number has been reduced to about 500 thanks to partnerships with other organizations, he said.
The groups have faced challenges and setbacks, however.
After Rita, volunteers had fixed 80 houses in Cameron, La., about 50 miles south of Lake Charles. When Ike hit in 2008, all but 16 of those were knocked out again.
The idea the recovery is long-term is important, said PDA Coordinator Randy Ackley. “One of the problems that we as a country face is the perspective that after a disaster, you go in for three to six months and you’re done,” he said, adding that true recovery takes years and involves rebuilding homes as well as hope, confidence, and city infrastructure and services.
