Montana YWAMers in New Orleans

The Daily Inter Lake:

Kalispell relief workers report grim conditions near New Orleans

"Two Kalispell men helping with tree and debris removal near New Orleans say national news reports don't adequately describe the conditions there.
'You have to see it to believe it,' said Wade Long, a professional sawyer who called the Daily Inter Lake on his cell phone. 'We could smell New Orleans 20 miles away. It's putrid. It's the most grotesque smell I've ever had the experience of smelling.'

Long and his brother, Frank Long, owner of L&M Tree Service, left Sept. 6 for the Gulf Coast and are working in areas near New Orleans.

'There is so much to do here, it's mind-boggling,' Wade Long said.

The two men camped with evacuees along the way and heard harrowing stories from survivors. A couple of teenage brothers didn't know what had happened to their parents. They told the Longs about the days they spent at the New Orleans Convention Center, where they saw a woman get raped and a man get his throat slit in the chaos that followed the hurricane.

'I've always been a sturdy guy, but this wears you down,' Wade Long said. 'For the most part these people aren't complaining. They're tired of the blame. They want to get on with getting their lives back.'

The Longs expect they'll stay longer than the three weeks they had budgeted for the cleanup work. Frank Long said his crew is still operating his tree service locally. The brothers are collecting donations so they can continue working on the Gulf Coast. Money may be sent to Frank Long, 637 Denver Ave., Whitefish MT 59937.

TWO MORE Flathead Valley residents left for Louisiana this week to help with disaster relief related to Hurricane Katrina.

B.J. Lupton of Kalispell and Wendell Tharpe of Lakeside left Sunday to spend a week working with the Salvation Army relief effort in Baton Rouge, La., where hundreds of hurricane survivors have been relocated.

Lupton is the owner of Snappy Sport Senter and chairman of the Salvation Army advisory board. Tharpe, a retired electrical engineer, spent most of his career at the Kennedy Space Center and has worked for Youth With A Mission in Lakeside for the past six years.

Among the local volunteers still in the Gulf Coast region are Northridge Heights Church of God pastors Terry Harper and Derrick Zamora, plus Kalispell and Bigfork firefighters.

Barbara Walden reportedly left Tuesday to work with the Unitarian Church ministry helping out evacuees.

A contingent of Kalispell and Bigfork firefighters also is on duty assisting with hurricane relief."

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Google Transl. by: Online Business Journal