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Catholic Charities works to help Hurricane Wilma victims be ready for next season

By Judy Bokorney
Web Site Editor

As residents of Florida begin to batten down the hatches for another hurricane season, Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice is galvanizing to assist remaining victims of Hurricane Wilma to make a full recovery before the next disaster strikes.

To facilitate assistance in the community, Catholic Charities is participating in a project sponsored by Governor Jeb Bush’s Florida Hurricane Relief Fund called Neighbors to the Rescue. This program puts neighbors in touch with neighbors to provide relief to individuals and families whose lives were disrupted by Hurricane Wilma. The Neighbors to the Rescue program connects volunteers, taps into community resources and creates virtual warehouses of available materials, goods, services, transportation and housing for those recovering from the storm that devastated South Florida.

Catholic Charities is looking to the community to help assist the last group of victims of Hurricane Wilma that need to be ready for the 2006 hurricane season.

“We are looking for volunteers, business and organizations that can offer short-term assistance to get victims back on their feet quickly,” said Peter Routsis-Arroyo, president of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc. Help can come in the form of interior and exterior home repair, donation of furniture or appliances, landscaping services and cleanup, hurricane prevention materials, housing, transportation, or volunteers who can coach a family or individual with their specific needs.

Mary Ashley, a resident of Naples who is physically challenged and a victim of Hurricane Wilma, was assisted by the Neighbors to the Rescue program. According to Patricia Rios, Catholic Charities Neighbors to the Rescue Coordinator in Collier County, a tree fell on Ashley’s mobile home resulting in damage to the roof and causing the floors to collapse in the bedroom and hallway. The roots of one tree also ripped the air conditioning unit away from the home and another fallen tree blocked her doorway.

Through the Neighbors to the Rescue database and virtual warehouse, Rios found a volunteer group called Chain Saw for Jesus to cut and remove tree branches at no cost for Ashley. Tree stumps were removed at a reduced rate by Affordable #1 and Taylor Made Roofing donated materials for the roof repair and built a foundation for the new air conditioning unit. Florida Comfort Systems installed the air conditioning system with a rebate given by Florida Power and Light.

“After this project, the owner of Taylor Made Roofing offered his individual service as a volunteer for the program by donating construction materials that could be used to help victims,” Rios said. “When communities work together after a disaster, recovery time is much faster,” she said.

The Neighbors to the Rescue program offers two basic opportunities to become involved with assisting individuals and families from the devastation of Hurricane Wilma. The first is by offering to coach a family or individual where a volunteer or group of volunteers is matched with victims who qualify for assistance. Second, those looking to help can donate items or services to the virtual warehouse, where donors/volunteers will be contacted when a specific match is found for a hurricane victim.

Catholic Charities has three Neighbors to the Rescue coordinators located in Lee, Collier and Hendry counties, the areas hardest hit in the Diocese of Venice from Hurricane Wilma. “It is imperative that everyone in those communities impacted by the storm be fully functional again to be prepared for the next hurricane season,” said Routsis-Arroyo.

For information about the Neighbors to the Rescue Program please contact the coordinator in your area:

• Lee County – Marielys Figueroa at 239-337-4193
• Collier County – Patricia Rios at 239-793-0059
• Hendry County – Maria Depaz at 863-983-2274.

Click here to read a Neighbors to the Rescue newsletter.

Click on the logo below to go to the Neighbors to the Rescue web site.

Photo #1: Last October hundreds of Hurricane Wilma victims such as Betsahida Vasquez, 2, and her father Rufino Vasquez waited in long lines outside Guadalupe Social Services of Catholic Charities in Immokalee for food and water.

Photo #2: Hurricane Wilma was especially devastating to residents of mobile or trailer homes on South Florida, such as this one in Immokalee.

The photos on this page were taken by Heather Felton of The Florida Catholic Newspaper.