More than 250 volunteers are expected to participate throughout the course of the four-week “BWA Blitz Build” in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, from April 20 to May 17, 2008. Nearly one-third of the homes in the parish were destroyed by Hurricane Rita, and many people remain in temporary housing or live in homes still damaged by the storm.
Suzette Bonin and her young daughter were living three miles from Vermilion Bay when the hurricane hit, inundating their home with 17 feet of water, and destroying all of their belongings.
The apartment of Allen and Shacira Savoy was flooded by the storm. The sewers backed up, and most of their furniture and other possessions were lost. The Savoys and their five children, ranging in age from eight months to nine years old, have been living in a FEMA trailer.
James and Susan Gibson lost everything they owned in the hurricane. The couple moved in with their son, but his trailer was destroyed by a tornado and they were forced to relocate again.
These families, and three additional families, will be beneficiaries of the homes constructed during the Blitz Build. As part of the Habitat program, the new homeowners will contribute “sweat equity” by helping to build their home, by volunteering at the Habitat ReStore, or by taking classes about home ownership.
Baptist World Aid, the relief and development arm of the BWA, provided funds toward the construction of three of the homes to be built during the Blitz. Three BWA Global Impact Churches, First Baptist Church of Wilmington, North Carolina, Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church, Virginia, and Seventh & James Baptist Church, in Waco, Texas, contributed money needed for the additional three homes. Volunteers from several Baptist churches will help with the building.
This year’s Blitz is the second in which the BWA has participated. In the 2007 Blitz, volunteers constructed 12 homes in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for victims of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina.
Volunteers are still needed for the 2008 Blitz Build, especially for the weeks of May 4-10 and May 11-17. Both individuals and church groups are encouraged to participate. For information about volunteering, contact jjustus@bwanet.org.
