Through some random phone calls, I met a group of about 36 people from Slidell and N.O. There is a 99-year-old woman in the group, teenagers who have lost contact with friends, kids bored with the tiny room and adults who are struggling to focus on what needs to be done. They have only the clothes on their backs and a few credit cards. They are living in four rooms at the Suburban Lodge in Stockbridge, Georgia. Twenty some odd others have recently joined them from throughout the Gulf Coast region. These people need help, and soon.
With a few phone calls, the local food banks have rallied. My friends and family are getting clothing together. The United Way has given me a wealth of resources, but somebody has to make the calls. Somebody has to start identifying the basic needs of these people that have come to our backyard for safety. Dial 2-1-1 for the United Way, or in metro Atlanta www.unitedwayatlanta.org they will direct you if you are willing. Call your local Red Cross, they will provide prescription drug vouchers if you coordinate with a local pharmacy. Businesses that you patronize will usually donate food or something.
I don't want to trivialize donations to any relief agency. Funds are desperately needed.
But when you talk to these people future funding is not enough. They have to eat now.
As a community, especially those of us in the southeast can provide some comfort and aid to the flood victims.
I am not writing just about Georida, Freida, and their group. There are people throughout Southeast in little hotels and motels that have lost everything. I am just overwhelmed by their losses. They are rinsing their underwear in the sinks at night. Some of them have special dietary needs (diabetic) and medical needs (99 yrs old for God's sake). They are battling fear, depression and boredom. Jobs, homes, pets, cars and clothing and all the things that we just reach for like salt and pepper are gone.
Families have lost contact with loved ones that are traveling up and down the highways looking for cheap lodgings. I got a call last night from a friend trying to reconnect two women ages 92 and 94 with family. These ladies are alone in a motel in Newnan, Georgia. The details are bleak. The needs are endless. We know all these people are waiting for somebody to help them. It can be me or you or anybody. It is within our power to make these folks lives better with a few phone calls.