Booman Tribune

This may be the best place to send Katrina donations

by MaximusNYC
Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 01:29:09 PM EST

Like many people, I ponied up for the Red Cross in the early days of the Katrina disaster.  But since then, I've heard some disquieting rumors about how they use donations.  I don't expect a charitable entity to be 100% perfect, nor do I think one or two missteps in the confusion of an urgent relief effort should be an excuse not to donate.  And I don't get mad that the Red Cross banks some money for future disasters.  Still, the CEO's salary is almost half a million dollars a year.  So I've been looking for an alternative.

This weekend, a friend who is doing some writing for a philanthropy magazine offered an excellent suggestion: the community foundations for New Orleans and Baton Rouge.  These are the umbrella charitable groups that dispense funds to numerous local organizations.  They have been on the ground down there all along, and have the best sense of local needs.

The Greater New Orleans Foundation has lost its offices for the time being, and is being hosted by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.  If you want to target your donations for Katrina relief, the best bet is their new joint venture: Foundations for Recovery.

Foundations for Recovery

From the front page of FoundationsforRecovery.org:

FoundationsforRecovery.org, a collaboration between the Baton Rouge Area Foundation and The Greater New Orleans Foundation, has established two funds in response to the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Katrina to southeast Louisiana.  To date, over $7,500,000 has been raised between these two funds.

The Hurricane Katrina Displaced Residents Fund will benefit those individuals evacuated to Baton Rouge from the hurricane impacted areas in Greater New Orleans, who are now unable to return for what maybe an extended period. Early official estimates suggest that as many as 500,000 individuals may be required to remain in our area for up to six months, and they will face numerous challenges related to housing, food, education, healthcare and basic survival necessities.   This fund will support those entities and programs in our area that endeavor to meet these critical needs, as well as address the impact this influx of residents will have on our community.

The Hurricane Katrina New Orleans Recovery Fund will focus on the rebuilding of infrastructure to provide basic human services to residents of these devastated areas. FoundationsforRecovery.org will coordinate closely with federal, state and local officials in an attempt to provide resources to programs and efforts that positively and immediately impact the quality of life of these individuals, and contribute to the overall rebuilding of critical service delivery mechanisms in the Greater New Orleans area.

The Baton Rouge Area Foundation and Greater New Orleans Foundation value the contributions of each donor and take their stewardship responsibilities seriously.

Foundations for Recovery was created to (1) recognize the incredible support of community and private foundations, and individual donors around the country; and (2) fulfill our commitment to transparency and open reporting.

Since we believe that integrity in grantmaking requires great diligence, our staff reviews the practices and capacity of every organization making a grant request for the basic care and relief of Hurricane Katrina evacuees in Baton Rouge. Applicant programs, prior to approval, undergo thorough evaluations and onsite rapid assessments.  We'll use this site to provide reports on the grants we've issued, and updates on the progress our community programs are making.

Please pass this info along!

More commentary at The Situation Room



Display:
Great idea! Also, these groups are doing work directly in the community. Some red cross worker have bailed to work with them:

From a previous comment; There are a couple of organizations doing grass roots work in that area also: Veterans for Peace in Covington, and Commonground in Algiers, right across the river from New Orleans. Covington is across Lake Pontchartrain, via the Causeway bridge, from New Orleans.

Their websites are:  http://www.vfpchapter110.org/

http://www.commongroundrelief.org/

These organizations need your help. The Covington location in particular needs vans and trucks for delivery of supplies. Common Ground needs volunteers.

by duranta (yocandra42@hotmail.com) on Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 04:05:08 PM EST
Thanks for the info.  I too have concerns about what I have heard about the Red Cross.  I don't know if negative comments here and elsewhere were fair and objective, but I am concerned about "making my next donation count".  I will recommend this diary.

It is time for Democrats to remember who got us in this mess, oppose them and not each other.
by keepinon (jaukkuri@sbcglobal.net) on Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 05:00:21 PM EST
I am concerned about "making my next donation count".  I will recommend this diary.

I agree AND recommend as well.

I think there is too much money going into salaries for people that are already rich to begin with, and I also think they divert way too many of the resources that people think they are donating to.

It is an insult to the many people that need the resources, and an insult to the thousands of volunteers that do all of the real work.

It is kind of sad that when disaster strikes the first thing the Red Cross does is set up their advertising campaign to solicit donations.

Support BooTrib

by Connecticut Man1 (connecticutman1 ATsbcglobal DOT net) on Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 08:11:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I want to point out also that I am eligible for the emergency red cross vouchers. However, we have all been calling night and day for 3 weeks now and we can never get through. Outrageous that they have collected 1 billion dollars and can't hire enough operators to give the money to the people who need it.
by duranta (yocandra42@hotmail.com) on Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 08:48:04 PM EST
I am plugging Habitat for Humanity

And, an interesting fundraiser going on is through the college near LA where my brother has been taking art classes--Citrus College. Their art department is putting together a collection of greeting cards to raise money for hurricane victims. They have chosen one painting my brother did based on a honeymoon picture of my wife and me for one card. So my wife and I were unwitting and indirect models for a tiny part of the relief effort.

Read the PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRAT Newsletter

by mole333 (mole333@gmail.com) on Mon Sep 26th, 2005 at 09:33:28 PM EST


Display:
Go to: [ Booman Tribune Homepage : Top of page : Top of comments ]
Menu
Login
. Make a new account
. Reset password





Find textbooks at Alibris!

NOTE: Overstock bests Amazon's prices and is "blue."

THE BOOKS WITH "BUZZ":
______________

Learn the real story behind the WMD in Iraq:

The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an Age of Extremism
by Ron Suskind

Read Barack Obama's vision for America:

The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
by Barack Obama

DaveW recommends:

I Am a Strange Loop
by Douglas Hofstadter

Need some laughs?

I Am America (and So Can You!)
by Stephen Colbert

rae recommends:

Dark Ages America: The Final Phase of Empire
by Morris Berman.

On BooMan’s shelf:

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin

This looks interesting:

Adventure Divas
by Holly Morris

Here’s a good one from
Elizabeth Gilbert:

Eat Pray Love
by Elizabeth Gilbert

"Crash" * Best Motion Picture, Academy Awards * Only $11.79 at Overstock * 2006 SAG Winner, Best Ensemble

Check out
Powell's new section:
NEW FAVORITES

Selected new arrivals at 30% off

Recommended by Indianadem and ejmw:
The Conscience of a Liberal
by Paul Wellstone

From northcountry’s bookshelf:

The New Golden Age:
The Coming Revolution Against
Political Corruption and Economic Chaos
by Ravi Batra

A novel about contractors in Iraq from the woman that runs The Spy That Billed Me:

Outsourced: A Novel
from RJ Hillhouse.


SOTW-120x90
Download Sleeper Cell on iTunes (Better than "24") Download Weeds on iTunes (Hilarious 1/2-hour adult comedy starring Mary-Louise Parker) Download Late Nite with Conan O'Brien on iTunes
John Belushi - SNL
Download South Park on iTunes
Verve Vault

James Hunter - People Gonna Talk:
James Hunter - People Gonna Talk
icon


Great Deals
----- * ^ * -----

Find mystery novels by Nancy Pickard ("Kansas")



Challenging Empire: How People, Governments, and the UN Defy US Power by Phyllis Bennis (interviewed on DN!)


Featured by Keith Olbermann, New (Powell's Sale): Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower by William Blum (whose other books merit serious consideration)


"Explosive" State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration
by James Risen


The book the CIA doesn't want you to read: Jawbreaker: The Attack on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander
Larry Johnson's review


BT's all-time best seller:

PERMACULTURE:
A Designers' Manual

$79.95 * Sale: $59.95


Unequal Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U.S. Women's History (Third Edition)


The Undercover Economist: Exposing Why the Rich Are Rich, the Poor Are Poor And Why You Can Never Buy a Decent Used Car!


The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl
by Timothy Egan


Green Press Initiative
----- * ^ * -----


Journalistas: 100 Years of the Best Writing and Reporting by Women Journalists by Eleanor Mills * NYT review


Bury Me Standing: the Gypsies & Their Journey


1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus



Brokeback Mountain
by Annie Proulx
----- * ^ * -----
Check out Powell's
"At The Movies"


Imperial Ambitions: Conversations on the Post-9/11 World by Noam Chomsky (Power & Terror: Post 9-11 Talks)


The Price of Privilege:

How Parental Pressure and
Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of
Disconnected and Unhappy Kids

by Madeline Levine


Save 35-70% on
name brand clothing,
footwear, and outdoor gear
at SierraTradingPost.com

:





We listened to PEN American Center's "State of Emergency" and found 1940s books by Curzio Malaparte only at Alibris. (Selection (MP3) excerpted from "The Skin.")

Alibris - Books You Thought You'd Never Find
Banned Books * Are you a fan of Film Noir, Art House, Documentaries or Hong Kong Action? * Searching for a long-lost children's book or a first printing of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue on vinyl? Find it at Alibris!

:
:
www.Patagonia.com



Booman Tribune Homepage
admin@boomantribune.com
powered by Scoop

A-List Blogger

Blogarama - The Blog Directory

More blogs about Blogs at Technorati.

Listed on BlogShares

© 2007 Booman Tribune