CHALMETTE, LA – 4 SEPTEMBER 2012
SBP resumed normal operating business hours today, Tuesday September 4, 2012.
BATON ROUGE, LA – 29 AUGUST 2012 – 8:06AM
As soon as it is safe, SBP will invest, full-throttle, in the recovery efforts. SBP secured all of the houses that we are rebuilding and made sure our clients had safety plans. Join us for daily stakeholder calls for updates and to see you you can be involved. 2:00 CST: 218-339-2699, pin 725076. Please donate to SBP today so that SBP can optimally respond to the impact of Isaac.
NEW ORLEANS, LA – 28 AUGUST 2012 – 3:15PM
Contact: Adrian K. Cohn – 504/252-0727 – Adrian.Cohn@StBernardProject.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEW ORLEANS, LA – 28 August 2012 – On Monday, New Orleans disaster recovery nonprofit St. Bernard Project launched a massive effort to ensure that its clients were safe and secure in anticipation of Hurricane Isaac. Hurricane Isaac is expected to make landfall near New Orleans almost seven years to the day after Hurricane Katrina completely devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. All efforts were led by former Marines Kevin Booher and Reese May, alongside SBP’s Client Services Manager Chad Carson.
In preparation for the storm, SBP’s Client Services team contacted over 190 clients to determine if they had evacuation plans, needed alternate shelter, and if they needed assistance in preparing for the storm. Most clients contacted are veterans of such storms and had plans in place. Andrea Portales, Volunteer Coordinator stated, “I felt like I was really helping the clients that did not know what to do. I’m glad I could help”.
Additionally, SBP boarded and secured 36 houses in the Greater New Orleans area, homes that had been previously devastated seven years ago by Hurricane Katrina. Zack Rosenburg, SBP’s co-founder and CEO stated, “Our team did some outstanding work today. More than ever, SBP is committed to rebuilding the homes and lives of disaster-impacted residents of New Orleans. We will see this job through.”
Rosenburg estimates that SBP spent roughly $20,000 on fuel, supplies and salaries in Monday’s preparation efforts. The group hopes to recoup funds via an already-in-progress fundraising push around the 7th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.
SBP volunteers and staff also took time to visit 26 of their work sites in two parishes, removing and securing tools and loose yard articles.
With due diligence, planning and well-executed plans, SBP continues to make sure that its staff, volunteers and clients are protected and secure during Hurricane Isaac. SBP is conducting twice-daily all staff check-in calls and a daily stakeholder’s call for anyone interested in learning more about SBP’s rebuilding efforts around Hurricane Isaac and the seventh anniversary of Katrina. Calls are scheduled for 12 PM noon CST. Interested parties should dial (218) 339-2699, pin #725076.
About SBP:
SBP is an innovative, award-winning nonprofit organization that removes physical, mental and emotional barriers for vulnerable individuals and families struggling to recover from natural disasters, while also serving as a model for disaster rebuilding and affordable housing. For more information, please visit www.stbernardproject.org. For up-to-the minute updates, facebook.com/stbernardproject or twitter.com/stbernardproj.
NEW ORLEANS, LA – 27 AUGUST 2012 – 11:15AM
Dear SBP Family,
We need your help.
While the path of Tropical Storm Isaac is still uncertain, all of us at SBP are working to ensure that our clients, volunteers and staff are safe and informed. Today, our staff and volunteers are working with our current and past clients, making sure their homes are secure and they have an evacuation plan in place.
SBP needs your help to purchase materials and supplies necessary to secure the 40+ homes that are currently under construction. And more than ever, we need your help to continue our work rebuilding New Orleans long after the threat of Tropical Storm Isaac has passed.
Your donation will help secure and rebuild the homes of clients like Sande Grantz, who has been living in a trailer in front of her badly damaged home. Sande, like roughly 60% of SBP’s clients, lost her rebuilding funds to fraudulent contractors.
The safety of our clients, volunteers and staff is our top priority. As Isaac approaches Louisiana, our clients are especially vulnerable. Many of our clients, hardworking Americans just like Sande, are still living in unsuitable conditions – in gutted homes or in trailers – while they wait for the funding to come through that will move them off the waiting list and back into the home they owned before Katrina.
The timing of Isaac is not lost on any of us. Wednesday marks the 7th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and there is still much work to be done in New Orleans. With 130 families on our waiting list, and 10+ calls coming in every week – a caller’s average age is 61 years – the time is now to donate.
Please take a moment and reflect on what the past seven years have looked like for the war veterans, single moms, children, and elderly couples on our waiting list. Then join us today as we look forward with the steadfast intention that we will not rest until this work is done.
NEW ORLEANS, LA – 27 AUGUST 2012 – 9:30AM
Due to the threat of Tropical Storm Isaac on the Greater New Orleans Area, St. Bernard Project is taking the following actions to protect and ensure the safety of our staff, clients, and volunteers:
- Volunteer activities suspended until further notice;
- Clients contacted to ensure evacuation plans are in place;
- SBP management team working to ensure that all staff members have a plan in place; all staff will participate in mandatory conference calls twice per day until further notice.
How can I help?
SBP requests financial support to offset the cost of evacuation. To successfully ensure the safety of our staff, clients and volunteers, SBP has to invest in protecting assets. The cost of this evacuation takes away from our ability to rebuild homes for clients – donate now offset the cost of Tropical Storm Isaac.
©2010 ST. BERNARD PROJECT