Woman continues work for hurricane survivors

Quilts, pillows, jackets and food are the comfort items being distributed.
By JEANNE STARMACK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
AUSTINTOWN -- In Louisiana, it's no normal Cajun Christmas.
Hurricane Katrina's devastating mark is still on Jean Lafitte, La., a town of about 2,000 people 15 miles from New Orleans.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers promised to people who are homeless have not been delivered, said Kathleen Price, founder of an aid organization called Mission of Love that she runs out of her home in the township.
Some people are living in tents, "tripled up," said Price, who has spoken to the town's mayor, Timothy Kerner. Some extended families are crammed into houses that are still standing.
"And of course, they have no jobs."
Second visit
Has there been much progress toward a recovery? "Things are at a standstill," she said.
She went back to the town this weekend, her second visit since September, when Mission of Love volunteers took truckloads of relief supplies into the New Orleans area. She and her husband, Bob, stayed with Kerner.
The focus on this trip, she said, was to distribute food so people have it for the holidays. She also intended to see what else the town needs, and she hopes to organize a collection of construction materials for home building after she returns today.
Price said late last week that she was not taking a lot of supplies with her, because she was flying down.
She was, however, taking 100 handmade quilts donated through a Web site called equilter.com. She was also taking teddy bears to give to children and pillows made by teachers at Volney Rogers Junior High School in Youngstown.
With temperatures in the 40s and 50s this time of year in Jean Lafitte, she said, she was also taking jackets. Food, she said, would be bought in the area and distributed.
Next project
Price said she hopes to return yet again to Jean Lafitte with construction materials and a crew of volunteer home builders. She said businesses with surplus materials are welcome to donate. Any volunteers who want to join the mission will be expected to pay their own way.
Price said that since she began Mission of Love in 1991, more than 1,500 people have volunteered to join her on missions throughout the world.
She relies on donations, she said, and she doesn't receive any grants.
"We meet and work together and have no attachments or expectations. We walk away only with a sense of joy for having helped," she said.
To arrange for delivery of donations or for more information about the organization, call Price at (330) 793-2388 or (330) 720-0278.