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Golden Rule 007 - In The Aftermath of Ike

Businesses, Colleges, Government Agencies, Non-Profits, and Christian Groups Step Up To Help People Rebound After Ike

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World News

Reaching Out With The Golden Rule In The Wake Of Hurricane Ike

Many Organizations Are On Target With The Golden Rule And Assistance For People Impacted By Hurricane Ike.

Hurricane Ike started as a “Tropical Wave” (aka African Easterly Wave) that can be traced to Sudan on August 19. These low pressure weather fronts typically run north/south and travel in a westerly direction from their points of origin. When the tropical waves move out into the Atlantic, the convection currents and warm water sometimes combine to create tropical storms that can grow into hurricanes.

Hurricane Ike was close behind Hurricane Gustav that struck the Gulf Coast near New Orleans on September 1, 2008. Hurricane Gustav damages are estimated at $15 billion, which quickly emptied relief supplies and savings from several relief organizations.

At one point, Hurricane I was 550 miles in diameter (885 kilometers) and wind speeds were 240 miles per hour (390 kph).

The Hurricane had already caused extreme damage in several Caribbean countries including $4 billion in Cuba.

On Saturday September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike came on shore near Houston, Texas with winds speeds of 120 miles per hour (190 kph).

As Hurricane Ike moved north, it merged with a large cold front that combined with high windspeeds in Ohio and severe flooding in Indiana, Illinois, and other states before it moved up through Canada and left the North American Continent by September 15.

Wind damage and flood damage followed in its wake.

After three days of devastation, Hurricane Ike damages in the coastal areas are estimated at $30.5 billion in the U.S.. That makes it the third costliest hurricane of all time (behind Katrina ($81.2 billion in 2005) and Andrew ($40.7 billion in 1992)).

A Duke Energy spokesman said they had never seen anything like it. Never! Power was knocked out to 90% of the Duke customers. Power was knocked out to: 3,000,000 in Texas; 200,000 in Arkansas; 85,000 in Missouri; 49,000 in Illinois; 350,000 in Indiana; 1,900,000 in Ohio; 180,000 in Pennsylvania; 100,000 in New York; and 30,000 in Canada.

Assistance to people that were impacted by Ike are coming from a variety of organizations.

Catholic Charities is working to bring food and water to displaced community members and are assisting with clean-up. www.catholiccharities.org. Catholic Charities reports there are 100,000 Houston area residents working with the organization.

FEMA is assisting people not covered by insurance with transitional shelter and emergency loans for a few days food and shelter. FEMA reports its assistance is not intended to restore your damaged property to its condition before the disaster. http://www.fema.gov/news/event.fema?id=10570

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is providing assistance for dinsinfection of drinking water, prescription drug assistance, illness prevention, hazardous clean-up guidance, counseling for children, guidance for septic systems and private drinking wells, guidance for using generators, guidance for dealing with trauma and mental health, and Medicaid/Medicare services. http://www.hhs.gov/disasters/emergency/naturaldisasters/hurricanes/ike/index.html

Wells Fargo provided emergency banking locations to cover 180 bank branches that were temporarily closed in Texas.

The state of Texas provided unemployment insurance and unemployment assistance. http://www.twc.state.tx.us/news/ikeinfo.html

Humane Society of Boulder Valley (Colorado) provided assistance to pet owners. http://hsbv.typepad.com/walktheblog/2008/09/hurricane-ike-assistance.html

Texas Legal Services Center established a legal hotline for low income people needing legal aid.

American Red Cross is providing vaccinations and other minor medical relief in Caribbean countries including Cuba and Haiti.

Medecins Sans Frontieres is providing vaccinations and other minor medical relief in Caribbean countries including Cuba and Haiti.

Stanford University offered special assistance to students affected by Hurricane Ike. http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2008/september24/ike-092408.html

Hard Rock Café was planning fund raising events and benefit concerts.

Teamsters Union is providing financial assistance to residents of Louisiana and Texas. http://www.ble.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=4697

UC San Diego Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT San Diego) sent a 35 person team of local medical volunteers  to care for victims of flooding and injuries due to storm conditions. http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/18507

Kroger, Albertsons, and Tom Thumb are providing food to the North Texas Food Bank for distribution to storm victims. http://www.ntxfoodbank.org/gi_hurricane_ike_preparation.cfm

American Kennel Club (AKC) is sending supplies and offering assistance for pet owners. http://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm?article_id=3604

The McCormick Foundation committed to provide a $0.50 on the dollar matching fund for $2 million provided to organizations raising funds for non-profit organizations providing disaster relief and assistance to those affected by the Hurricane in Texas. The McCormick partners include: Chicago Cubs, Chicago Tribune, Cleveland Cavaliers, Colorado Rockies, WPIX-TV, Denver Newspaper Agency, WTIC-TV, KTLA-TV, The Los Angeles Times, Newsday, North County Times, WGN-TV. http://www.mccormickfoundation.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=319

Houston Astros chairman, the foundation, staff, and players combined their efforts to donate $1 million for people impacted by Hurricane Ike that reside in the Houston Area. http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080917&content_id=3497387&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou&vkey=news_hou

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) sent salvage crews to provide assistance in the removing small vessels sunk in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GICW).  http://www.marinelink.com/Story/NAVSEAResponds,ProvidesHurricaneIkeRelief-212855.html

Houston Rockets purchased three semi-truck loads of pre-packaged food and toiletry supplies that will be distributed to Houston Residents. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/6007640.html

American Red Cross put together 15 call centers across the country to help direct people to shelter locations and distribution points for supplies and food. One of the busier centers was located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. http://www.tulsaredcross.org/redcross/default.asp?SnID=1287955374

Exxon donated $5 million to Hurricane Ike relief that will be shared among The American Red Cross, Unite Way, The Salvation Army, and The Texas Relief Fund. Exxon Mobil employs 16,000 people in Houston and there are also 5,500 Exxon retirees in Houston. http://www.texasinsider.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=4630

Toyota pledged $1 million for Hurricane Ike Relief which includes $500,000 fro Toyota USA and the Gulf States Toyota private dealership. In addition, Toyota was reaching out to people that had car payments that may need to temporary relief until normal employment resumes. Toyota customers should call (800) 874-8822.

Friendships.org is coordinating relief efforts from churches and some businesses in order to provide a mix of food and emergency supplies, and basic shelter requirements for people from Galveston. http://friendships.org/

Somebody Cares America is a responding to calls from individuals and entire apartment complexes that in need of food, water, and power. Somebody Cares began as a Houston based ministry in 1981. http://www.somebodycares.org/

The Indiana National Guard was providing rescue relief to flood victims in Indiana that were overwhelmed by Hurricane Ike’s exit path.

Stephen F. Austin State University is providing bails of hay to feed livestock in Texas areas devastated by Ike. The University also was working to provide water troughs to farms that have had their water sources contaminated by salt water and other chemicals. http://www.sfasu.edu/pubaffairs/

Calvary Church is providing relief efforts to Galveston residents that have been devastated by Ike. Relief requested by homeowners include clean-up, moral support, and spiritual gathering. http://ccplano.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=0

Mobile Loaves and Fishes bringing help in the form of man-power and basic supplies. http://www.mlfnow.org/site/PageServer

Business

UNICEF and ECHO (European Commission Humanitarian Office) Are On Target With The Golden Rule In Areas Struggling With Malnutrition

Until recently, chronic malnutrition was widespread in poorer countries and difficult to address because many of the standard treatments required access to refrigeration. The poorer parts of the world were typically rural and not served with electricity to run the refrigeration equipment.

Then Plumpy Nut entered the scene. Plumpy Nut is a tasty (and nutritious) blend of peanut butter, powdered milk, and vitamins.

The blended product can help get malnourished children back to health in a matter of weeks. The product appeals to children and their parents, and it is affordable, comes in small containers that are easily transported and stored, it does not require refrigeration…and it is effective.

The bottom line, Plumpy Nut is a magic miracle cure for malnourished children.

At the time of this writing, there was one factory in west Africa that could produce up to 40 tons of Plumpy Nut per month. With the help of ECHO (European Commission Humanitarian Office), UNICEF purchased approximately 130 tons of the completed product last year that was subsequently used to treat 63,000 children.

http://www.unicef.org/nutrition/niger_39675.html

Entertainment

God Grew Tired Of Us - Golden Rule News From Sudan

In 2006, National Geographic Films and Christopher Quinn partnered to produce the film “God Grew Tired Of Us”.

The film is narrated by Nicole Kidman and features a glimpse of three people (Daniel Abol Pach, Panther Bior, and John Dau) who found their way to the U.S. after overcoming their ordeals in Southern Sudan.

Particularly noteworthy are the scenes from a refugee camp that shows the family bonds and joy the people shared with each other despite difficult circumstances with little food and no modern conveniences.

The joy and smiles of the residents in the refugee camp contrast starkly with the serious expressions of the people once they relocated to the United States and become pressured with bills, schedules, and friends in Africa seeking help.

The film won several awards and is likely available at local libraries.

This film is highly recommend for anyone wanting to no more about Sudan and the people targeted by the Sudanese Arab Muslim government leaders.

One of the people featured is John Dau. John Dau attended community college courses and has established the John Dau Sudan Foundation that provides financial and technical support to build and sustain health care clinics in Southern Sudan.  http://www.johndaufoundation.org/

Additional details on the films and other groups inspired to reach out to Sudanese refugees can be found at the site for “God Grew Tired Of Us”.  http://www.godgrewtiredofus.com/