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About The Georgia bulletin (Atlanta) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 12, 1989)
PAGE 8 — The Georgia Bulletin, October 12,1989 NOT SPARING TREE — “Woodsman” Carl diocese not hit by Hugo has been sent into Kastner doesn’t spare a tree which fell at St. stricken areas. High school students are among Thomas the Apostle parish, North Charleston, the volunteers. “People-power” from areas of the Charleston Church Damage Is $250,000 In Charlotte BY WILLIAM MILLS CHARLOTTE, N.C. (CNS) — Tropical storm Hugo caused $250,000 in damage to 26 church pro perties in the Charlotte Diocese, according to Msgr. John J. McSweeney, chancellor. “We incurred mostly wind, water and tree damage,” he said. “We are most thankful that we didn’t have any major structural damage and no personal injuries.” Hugo, which changed from a hurricane to a tropical storm as it moved inland Sept. 22, took a course that was not forecast and drove further inland, hitting Charlotte before tracking north westerly. All parishes took up a special collection for storm relief efforts Oct. 1. A special collection in the neighboring Diocese of Raleigh was to be held soon. A major Red Cross food preparation, packing and distribution center was set up at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte Sept. 30 to relieve a Baptist church that was serving up to 10,000 meals a day im mediately following the wind storm. Trinitarian Sister Fran ces Sheridan, Charlotte di ocesan director of Catholic social services, said par ishes were taking responsi bility for the food center on a rotating basis. The first day, St. Patrick parishioners prepared 4,000 meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sister Sheridan describ ed her neighborhood after Hugo passed. “You couldn’t even walk down your own street” because of downed trees. “You couldn’t even see beyond your yard,” she said. “It was like you had stepped into a forest.” One woman caught in the winds told Sister Sheridan that it felt like being in a blender. “There is camaraderie among all who are helping out,” Sister Sheridan said. “We’re all aware how for tunate we really were.” Sister Sheridan, coor dinator of the diocese’s relief efforts, is also a member of the Interfaith Disaster Recovery Com mittee of the North Carolina Council of Churches. In addition to diocesan relief efforts, several Charlotte parishes are reaching out to those in need. Msgr. Richard Allen, pastor of St. Ann Church, said the school cafeteria was being used to serve food to neighbors without electricity. “It’s kind of exciting to see how creative we can be with the food we have available,” he said. St. John Neumann Church’s kitchen facilities were also opened to neighbors, and space was made available for tem porary shelter. Diocesan school superin tendent Michael Skube said schools opened Oct. 2 after being closed more than a week. One S.C. Parish Struggles To Cope BY JOHN E. CONICK Christ Our King parish in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. has become a center for services of all kinds since Hurricane Hugo. “We’re over the immediate crisis. Others are just begin ning,” said Sister deLourdes Essay, OLM. Nine mental health counselors are available through the parish, coming in from surrounding cities. Some are already working to set up discussion groups. The parish hall is being used by Sullivan’s Island Baptist Church for services. As of Oct. 4 the ecumenical food distribution center coor dinated by the parish became the only supply place on the island. The Salvation Army and the Red Cross are sending supplies to them. The center is open from noon to 5 p.m., but volunteers are there from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. stocking and reorganizing daily. “You name the state and we probably got something from them,” said parish secretary Marcia Roper. One source of help has been Atlantan John Woods from All Saints parish in Dunwoody, whose family had a summer residence on the Isle of Palms before Hugo. “When we heard about the initial devastation, we felt moved to con tact Christ Our King.” “I have four children. You can do a lot of things in life, but without diapers for children ...,” he observed. “We flew in and brought 1,000 disposable diapers.” Back in Atlanta he started procuring other items. A notice was sent to a Baptist church and the congregation sent 40 bags of clothing and other items. “Our garage began to look like an army supply depot. An associate brought in enough food to feed a family of four for a year.” With his son, Woods brought a truck in with some of the supplies. He flew his private plane in Oct. 5 with other items. A business acquaintance donated four cellular phones.- Woods also brought a videotape of the devastation back to Atlanta, copied it and made it available to corporations so they could see the need firsthand. “It has been amazing some of the things that happen over there,” Woods said. “Just as they were running out of water a man pulled up with 3,000 gallons of water.” “The crisis is just now beginning. It’s kind of like a death, first the denial. People start to realize that their infrastruc ture is wiped out and it is more damaging even than the meterological damage,” he said. “People are walking around bewildered. This is a massive destruction.” Mt. Pleasant is reaching out to Copahee, five miles away, a subdivision of trailers for 50 to 60 families that is 99 per cent “wiped out.” The one house standing belongs to a parishioner, Harry McManus, and the space under his house is being used to supply the needs of people. (John Conick is the editor of The Catholic Banner, Charleston.) Atlanta Aid A little more than $27,000 in aid for Hurricane Hugo victims is being sent to three Catholic dioceses by the archdiocese of Atlanta. Checks for $9,567 each are be ing sent to the diocese of Charleston, S.C., and Charlotte, N.C., and a check for $8,200 to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, said Loretta Kazmier of Catholic Social Services, which has been gathering contributions from parishes and individuals. The funds are those gathered so far, Mrs. Kazimer said, and more will be sent as it is received. GROTTO UNTOUCHED — Our Lady of Fatima shrine at Christ Our King-Stella Maris School in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., stands undamaged despite the numerous trees which had fallen around it. CATHEDRAL GIVES AID — Families line up outside the school hall at Charleston’s Cathedral of St. John the Baptist to cook food or to receive donated goods. (Photos courtesy of The Catholic Banner, Charleston)
