Parish Recovery Assistance Centers

Ida Response

Parish Recovery Assistance Centers: A holistic approach to disaster recovery

Story by Janet Marcel Photos by Brooks Lirette

After Hurricane Ida made landfall at Port Fourchon on Sunday, Aug. 29, with its 150 plus mile-an-hour winds devastating much of the area that comprises the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux as it moved north through southeast Louisiana, diocesan leadership immediately went to work on a disaster response plan. It soon became clear that many residents in the diocese were temporarily unable to live in their homes because of the damage and some were left homeless after their houses were completely destroyed.

One of the many ways the diocese has responded to this disaster, says Karen David, interim chief administrative officer and board chair for Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, was to address these urgent housing needs by working with the National Council of the United States Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVDP), and its sister company, the Disaster Services Corporation (DSC), to set up Parish Recovery Assistance Centers (P-RACs) in the diocese.

“I am incredibly proud of our efforts throughout Phase One of the diocesan disaster response plan. During the beginning of October, we implemented Phase Two, moving from responding to reopening efforts, which focus on case work and case management,” says David.

At a P-RAC, case workers document damages, listen to victims’ stories and assist them in registering for federal and state programs. Each family who visits a P-RAC receives a gift card to help support any unmet needs they might have.

During the month of October, P-RACs were strategically located in key areas throughout the Diocese of In photo above, case workers interview storm victims at St. Eloi Church parish in Theriot. In photo below, storm victims are interviewed at the Good Samaritan Food Bank in Thibodaux.

Houma-Thibodaux assessing people’s needs and discerning the best ways to help them. The P-RACs were located in each of the following areas for two weeks: St. Joseph, Chauvin; St. Eloi, Theriot; Sacred Heart, Cut Off; Holy Family, Grand Caillou; Holy Savior, Lockport; Our Lady of Prompt Succor, Golden Meadow; St. Lucy Church, Houma; St. Lawrence the Martyr, Kraemer; Thibodaux Food Bank, Thibodaux; St. Charles Borromeo, Pointe-aux-Chenes; and Sacred Heart, Montegut.

Through the support of the National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul, over 3,000 case files of local people from across a

Ida Response

the diocese’s 10 P-RACs have been collected.

“These are individuals and families from every walk of life, every denomination who simply are in need of a hand up through these difficult times,” says David. “We are embarking on case management in which we will directly walk with our people through this phase of the disaster response plan. Our case managers will navigate the insurance and FEMA claims process with individuals and families and connect them with financial assistance assets based on their individualized needs. It is our hope and prayer that over the next year, or years, we will impact thousands of lives by living our faith in action.”

Paula Dawson-Ringo, diocesan associate director of Catholic Housing Services who served as one of the case workers at the P-RACs, says the case workers attended a webinar about how to set up the Centers, gather the info needed from storm victims and help them navigate federal and state programs. She says a team from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul also visited some of the diocesan locations to make sure everything was in order and set up according to the guidelines they set forth.

“We had to deal with various types of situations. We heard some very heartwarming stories … some people just wanted to tell us their story and show us their pictures. Sometimes we just offered hugs and compassion,” says Dawson-Ringo.

P-RACs provide a holistic approach to disaster recovery; they do not replace the work of FEMA, the state or local Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, but rather compliment their services by being an outreach to survivors that may be socially, geographically and culturally isolated during the recovery process.

For more information on the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux’s Hurricane Ida response and recovery efforts, to receive assistance, or give assistance, visit: https://catholiccharitiesht.org/ ida. BC

Ida Response

Many are still homeless ...

Hurricane Ida hit Louisiana August 29: Two and a half months later, thousands are without a home.

Ida Response