Humanitarian Assistance - period ended 1.15.2006

Humanitarian Assistance/Medicine/Hoskins, Tom/The doctor is out/Brattleboro Reformer/Brattleboro/VT/USA/14-Jan-2006//…What they do not know is that every time they shared with him their fears and concerns, they were teaching him a little bit more about himself, and helping him toward becoming a more healthy person himself.

Hoskins was born in Princeton, N.J., and raised in a Quaker family. It is a religion and a way of life he continues to this day.

After finishing medical school and working as a resident, he volunteered in a hospital in Vietnam.

It was 1973, late in the war, but there was still plenty of work. He worked in a rehabilitation hospital, treating amputees. His future wife, Julie, was also working there. They married in Hong Kong, in 1975, on their way back to the United States.

Hoskins said while living in Vietnam, he gained a heightened appreciation for living in extended families. The Vietnamese lived among family members and Hoskins said when he got home, he and his wife decided they wanted to live with his wife's sisters and their companions. ….

Humanitarian Assistance/Hurricane Rita//Ministry lighting the way/Daily News - Galveston County/Galveston/TX/USA/15-Jan-2006//…When hurricanes arrive, there are many national sources for outreach and support.

When more common financial crises threaten to put families in Bacliff and San Leon on the ropes, people tend to turn to local caring ministries that are ready to step in and lend assistance and counseling.

One of these is Bay Area Christian Services.

“We’re the last hope for a lot of people,” said Donna Read. “We offer counseling, prayer, food or small amounts of rent, utilities or gasoline assistance.”

Read is the community outreach director for Bay Area Christian Services, which also uses the name Lighthouse Christian Ministries.

“Our main goal is to see our clients into a home church,” Read said. “We’re supported by a number of local churches, including First Baptist and the Friends Church in Bacliff, as well as New Hope Baptist.”

In addition to the smaller, local churches, Clear Creek Community Church in League City and Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Nassau Bay have signed on to help support the ministries.

The ministries’ greatest current need is for more volunteers to provide counseling or to work in the food pantries, resale shops or ministry offices ...

Humanitarian Assistance/Friends Disaster Service (NC) /Hurricane Katrina/Extraordinary group of Quakers make dream come true for 68-year .../Bogalusa Daily News/Bogalusa/LA/USA/6-Jan-2006//…BOGALUSA - The concrete foundation blocks were laid on Saturday and the walls started going up on Monday. The joists and rafters were set and the roof sheathing was completed by Tuesday afternoon. Today, the builders expect to turn the keys to the house over to the new owner, 63-year-old Joyce Penton of Bogalusa.

Another TV episode of 'Extreme Home Makeover'? No, it's all the work of an extraordinary group of Quakers know as the North Carolina Friends Disaster Service (NCFDS).

The NCFDS is no stranger to Washington Parish. The group began its service to this community in October to help allay the damage left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. They've hauled in over 1,000 bundles of roofing shingles, re-roofed nine homes, and repaired five others

Before that, they followed in the footsteps of Hurricanes Isabel, Andrew, and sundry other natural calamities that have left peoples' homes in splinters on the ground. They pick up the pieces, rebuild, and restore the dreams of shattered lives.

In all, over 100 individuals offered willing hands on the project. Besides Quakers, the group welcomes the participation of members of any religious or lay organization. Students from Quaker-supported Guilford College in Greenboro, N.C. gave up their school break to lend a hand. Also on site Tuesday were Baptists, Methodists, and other church groups. And there was more than a little good-natured ribbing about the relative carpentry skills of the various denominations.

When asked why the group elects to travel around performing these minor miracles, Charlie Routa smiled gently. 'We both get the blessing of it,' replied Routa. "And when we've finished, these folks have a better place to live than they've ever known... Besides, it's fun,' said Routa. ….