Covenant House Re-Opens Doors For Homeless In New Orleans
November 7, 2005
The Covenant House New Orleans crisis shelter was spared any major damage, but four apartments used by the long-term residential program were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. |
"The best way I can describe the scene is that New Orleans has the look of a city in a third world country," says Sister Patricia A. Cruise, S.C., the President of Covenant House, who recently returned from a working tour of the Covenant House New Orleans program.
Covenant House recently re-opened its crisis shelter to assist the large number of homeless in New Orleans. "The minute the health department, fire and other city officials gave us the go-ahead, we had at least 20 homeless children back with us," said Stacy Horn-Koch, Executive Director of Covenant House New Orleans. The facility also will expand its services temporarily to shelter homeless adults, including some of the service providers who continue to work with the poor while they themselves are homeless. |
Covenant House is committed to being an integral part of the rebuilding of New Orleans. Since the storm hit, the crisis shelter has been a haven for displaced victims of Hurricane Katrina. Tulane Medical Center set up a community health clinic at Covenant House that is averaging more than 150 medical visits a day. Also working out of the Covenant House facility is Louisiana State University's HOPS Clinic, which serves those with HIV/AIDS.
"In addition to the medical services, we have been handing out warm clothing, providing meals, and doing outreach with other organizations to identify and help those in need," says Sister Tricia. "The need is so great, because Covenant House is one of the few shelters still standing." |
Sister Patricia A. Cruise, S.C., President of Covenant House, with Calvin Burns, maintenance supervisor at Covenant House New Orleans, who risked his own life to save 46 people from the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina. |
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| Calvin saved people from the floodwaters using the tool chest from the back of a pick-up truck as a boat. |
The latest challenge is the influx of people returning to New Orleans to find work. "The working class and the working poor are returning, because, ironically, there are many jobs available," says Sister Tricia. "There are construction jobs and service jobs in the tourist industry. But all of these people need services if this city is to recover." |
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While working at the Covenant House New Orleans facility, Sister Tricia met with Calvin Burns, the Covenant House maintenance supervisor who risked his own life to save 46 people. "Calvin saved people from the floodwaters using the tool chest from the back of a pick-up truck as a boat," says Sister Tricia. Among the 46 people rescued by Burns were many children wading in waist deep water, elderly people, and a paraplegic man. Burns brought everyone he could rescue to Covenant House, where he and his family cared for them in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
(New Orleans television station WWL-TV will feature Mr. Burns in a series called "Silent Heroes" to air during November. He also will be featured in an article in the New Orleans Times-Picayune.)
While in New Orleans, Sister Tricia met with two young men who had been residents of Covenant House New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina. They have since landed jobs in the shipyards and are earning good money while living in a local hotel. "The courage and the resiliency of these young people is truly inspiring," says Sister Tricia. |
Sister Tricia with two former Covenant House residents who returned to volunteer their services in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. |
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Although the Covenant House crisis shelter was spared serious damage, four apartments in the long-term housing program were destroyed. Covenant House is working in close collaboration with many organizations, including Unity for the Homeless and Youth Oasis of Baton Rouge, in an effort to provide food, clothing, housing, and medical care. "It is imperative that we bring the working class and the working poor back to the city in order to rebuild," said Sister Tricia |
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