Church
Local LDS Church Aids in Hurricane Isaac Cleanup
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Submitted by Kathy Richardson
Central, La.-“It was very humbling to have an opportunity to serve individuals and families in their time of need. I am very grateful that we were spared significant storm damage from Hurricane Isaac,” said Mark Rotolo, of his experience helping victims of Hurricane Isaac begin the process of cleaning up.
Mark joined more than 1,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, from Central and around the state in a coordinated volunteer effort to aid victims of Hurricane Isaac. The relief workers brought all of their own supplies and camped out as they rendered assistance to storm victims. They also provided their own shovels, boots, gloves, and some even brought their front end loaders for moving massive piles of debris.
Neils Ludlow who coordinates relief efforts including managing work orders, organizing the work crews and sending supplies said, “The Church will provide tarps, hammers, fir strips and nails to cover holes in roofs. They will also be sending supplies to clean out water damaged homes such as crowbars, rakes, brooms, spray cans to spray bleach, wheelbarrows, large trash bags, and square shovels. For the protection of the workers from mold and mildew, they will be providing N95 masks and goggles.”
Over the course of the weekend volunteers contributed more than 1,200 man hours of service as they patched roofs, moved fallen trees, and handed out more than two tons of supplies to people affected by the storm.
Organizer of the event, Elder Randall R. Bluth, said, “It has been humbling to witness the quick response when the call for help went out. In less than 24 hours we had commitments from these 1,000 men and women to rearrange their weekend to offer relief to their brothers and sisters in hurricane ravaged areas of Louisiana. This is truly the gospel of Jesus Christ in action.”
In addition to volunteers and equipment, the Church will also be sending cleaning kits, personal hygiene kits, and food boxes that include beef stew, chili, chicken noodle soup, peanut butter and strawberry jam to aid those who have been victimized by this storm.
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