As a massive
relief effort gets under way in response to the overwhelming
devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, many gays and
lesbians are asking how they can help. In most
cases monetary donations are the best way to show your
support, but if you happen to live near the affected
areas and were untouched by the devastation, you may also
want to consider volunteering your time or opening up
your home to displaced victims. Here are a couple of
gay organizations that are currently coordinating
relief efforts:
The Metropolitan
Community Church has set up a Katrina Relief Center at
www.mccchurch.org/katrina/index.html.
The church is gathering "accurate and timely
information" in an attempt to provide a conduit for
sharing the latest information about the disaster and
the relief effort. It has also set up a relief fund where
gays and lesbians can send their dollars and is also
setting up a means of providing other kinds of
assistance as the needs become known.
For more
information check out the church's Web site or contact
Connie Gilpin at MCC of the Living Spring at
region2communications@mccchurch.org. Or contact the Reverend
Kurt Krieger at (816) 931-0750; (816) 210-5443; or
region2kurt@yahoo.com.
In addition to
MCC, the gay-focused Rainbow World Fund has launched a
Hurricane Katrina Relief Campaign. The organization has
partnered with America's Second Harvest to help the
survivors of the hurricane. Donations to the fund will
go to provide meals and groceries, transport food to
survivors, and secure additional warehouse space to assist
food banks in resuming and maintaining operations. One
hundred percent of the funds donated to the RWF
Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund will go directly toward
helping the survivors recover. Donate at www.rainbowfund.org/donate.
Also, the
National Youth Advocacy Coalition announced the formation of
the Hurricane Katrina LGBT Relief Fund to ensure that LGBT
youth and families receive the critical support they
need to regain stability in their lives. NYAC is
working in partnership with Children of Lesbians and
Gays Everywhere, Family Pride Coalition, Mautner Project:
The National Lesbian Health Organization, National
Black Justice Coalition, and the National Center for
Lesbian Rights, among others. Contributions can be
made at www.nyacyouth.org.
Donors will be able to find out more about the impact
of their gifts in the coming weeks on a new blog being
launched on the NYAC Web site.
In light of the
cancellation of the gay Southern Decadence celebration in
New Orleans, which was slated for this weekend, several
members of San Francisco's Mardi Gras club, Krewe de
Kinque, have organized a Western Decadence benefit for
hurricane relief. The event is set for Monday,
September 5, 3-7 p.m. at the Edge bar in San
Francsico's Castro district. All proceeds will go to
the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
"My family and
most all of my relatives have no home to go back to,"
said Krewe member Stephen Rowell, a native of New Orleans.
"[They have] no homes, no jobs, and hardly any hope. We need
to do something." Donations can be mailed to Krewe de
Kinque at 156 Hancock Street #4, San Francisco, CA
94114, and will be forwarded to the Red Cross. To
volunteer or donate prizes to the event, call Gary Virginia
at (415) 626-5004.
If your
organization is coordinating relief efforts in the aftermath
of the hurricane, please contact the editors of The
Advocate at news@advocate.com, and we will include you
in future postings on Advocate.com.
