Emergency Communities

Emergency Communities is a volunteer organization which formed after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It has provided meals and other relief to residents and emergency responders, first in Mississippi, then in Louisiana.

The group began with assistance from the International Humanities Center, which provides [501(c)|501 [c] (3)] fiscal sponsorship. [cite web
title=IHCenter Member Groups
work=International Humanities Center
url=http://ihcenter.org/groups.html
accessdate=2006-05-18] Many key Emergency Communities volunteers met at the New Waveland Café in Waveland, Mississippi. This cafe provided meals, medical services and free goods for local residents. On 1 December, 2005, the café closed its location, which was located in the parking lot of Fred's Department Store on U.S. Route 90 in Waveland.cite news
author=Renee Rosensteel & Mary Levine
url=http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/archive.cfm?type=News%20Feature&action=getComplete&ref=5795
title=Storm Relief Surge: Free spirits and the faithful continue to outpace official Katrina relief
work=Pittsburgh City Paper
date=2006-03-09
accessdate=2006-05-18 ] In November, Emergency Communities was incorporated. By 12 December the group had begun serving meals in a parking lot in Arabi, Louisiana, just outside of New Orleans.cite web
title=United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area Continues Relief Effort in St. Bernard Parish
work=United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area
url=http://www.unitedwaynola.org/news_and_events/index_features/relief_effort.htm
accessdate=2006-05-18] This operation, dubbed the Made With Love Café, continued through June 2006. It has provided up to 1400 meals per day to government workers, relief workers and returning residents in and around St. Bernard Parish, the civil parish where the café is located.cite news
first=Steven T.
last=Jones
url=http://www.sfbg.com/40/21/cover_katrina.html
title=From here to Katrina
work=San Francisco Bay Guardian
date=2006-02-22
accessdate=2006-05-18 ] The site, formerly an off-track betting parlor, became recognizable by its large tents and geodesic dome. [cite news
first=Ben
last=Thomas
url=http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?SectionID=11&SubSectionID=11&ArticleID=14935
title=Vaudeville troupe visits Katrina survivors
work=Port Townsend Leader
date=2006-05-04
accessdate=2006-05-18 ]

As of 08 May, 2006, Emergency Communities volunteers had included approximately 300 from AmeriCorps/NCCC or others supported by grants from the Corporation for National and Community Service. [cite web
title= National Service Responds to the Hurricanes: By the Numbers
work=Corporation for National and Community Service
url=http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/newsroom/katrina_numbers.asp
accessdate=2006-05-18] On 1 June, 2006, Emergency Communities shut down its outdoor operation in St. Bernard Parish, simultaneously opening a larger indoor operation a few miles away. On the same date, Emergency Communities served its first meal at a new location in Buras, Louisiana. [cite web
title=Next Stop: Plaquemines Parish – Emergency Communities announces the opening of a new relief kitchen and community center in Buras, Louisiana
work=Emergency Communities
url=http://emergencycommunities.org/news2.htm
accessdate=2006-05-18] On June 30, 2007, Emergency Communities closed the Y-Cafe in Buras and redeployed its resources to the Ninth Ward in New Orleans. A new organization, People for Plaquemines, is carrying on the mission of rebuilding lower Plaquemines Parish.

As of today, Emergency Communities no longer accepts volunteers on the Gulf Coast. However, their sister organization, lowernine.org, is continuing the work of rebuilding in the Lower Ninth Ward. [cite web
title=Volunteer: Emergency Communities
work=Emergency Communities
url=http://www.emergencycommunities.org/volunteer.htm
accessdate=2008-04-15]

References

External links

* [http://www.emergencycommunities.org/ Emergency Communities] - This site is down!
*
* [http://www.reason.com/news/show/116789.html A Healthy Dose of Anarchy: After Katrina, nontraditional, decentralized relief steps in where big government and big charity failed - Reason Magazine, December 2006]
* [http://www.college.columbia.edu/cct/may_jun07/cover.php/ Columbia College Article]
* [http://www.peopleforplaquemines.org/ People For Plaquemines