News From Louisiana
Dear Parents,
Although we have stopped taking donations of supplies, students across all grades are holding bake sales and other fundraisers to benefit those affected by Hurricane Katrina. We have also now enrolled 4 displaced students and will continue to find ways to help these families settle into their life in Atlanta, whether it be long-term or temporary. Thank you for your continued support and generosity.
We have received another update from Dr. Stephanie Graff of St. Elizabeth Hospital in Louisiana detailing how your donated supplies are being received and distributed:
"I wanted to update you on the status of your donations and South Louisiana in general. Thus far your donated items have gone to our patients here at St. Elizabeth, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Pete Marovich field evacuation hospital on the LSU campus, and Earl K. Long Charity Hospital. We've also been able to supply EMS units in the still inundated St. Bernard and St. Tammany Parishes. Numerous National Guard Units have picked up medical supplies.
"Shelters supplied with donations include:
"Lamar Dixon; St. John's Catholic Church; Horizon House; Amite, Louisiana; Hammond, Louisiana; and most recently Slidell, Louisiana. The American Red Cross has also graciously accepted many of the items for distribution to its shelters.
"Many of the visiting rescuers have also been able to restock their units here at our hospital at no charge - Arizona EMS, Iowa EMS, Minnesota Fire and Rescue, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Air Rescue Unit. We were also able to help with the rescue of many pets and horses currently being held in Gonzales, Louisiana.
"One very special trip we made earlier this week with supplies was to Slidell, LA. This is an area on the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain that really has been overlooked by federal aid and the Red Cross to date. When we arrived at a shelter there the people cried as we unloaded the supplies. They were so grateful to receive any help at all and then to hear that it had come from complete strangers in Atlanta - it was more than they could take in at one time. Many of these people had not changed clothes in over a week because there was nothing for them to change into and no supplies to clean anything with. We're already organizing another trip there on Friday to deliver supplies and provide a medical team of two doctors and two nurses to help with their immediate needs while we wait for the roads to be cleared and power restored to the area.
"I can't tell you and everyone there thank you enough! Thank you doesn't even come close to how good it feels to be able to help these people. Thankfully disasters like this don't happen very often but it's reassuring to me to know there are people like you (and everyone there) willing to do whatever you can to help. I'm really blessed to be here and now. This may well turn out to be one of the defining moments in my life and with all your help it’s turned into a positive one. Thankfully I was not one of the hundreds of doctors who had to sit painfully by the side of a patient dying for lack of basic needs.
"Your gifts have enabled us to provide for so many more patients than we ever could have on our own. If it hadn't been for these gifts I would have had to suffer the agony of those medical personnel on the roofs of hospitals in New Orleans watching patients die without the most basic supplies. Congratulations on being part of our health care team that managed to provide for thousands of patients and save thousands of lives!!
"Say hi to everyone there for me, pass on my sincere thanks to them all! There's a special place in Heaven for all of you!!!"
On a related note, please see the following link for information regarding child and adult immunization recommendations for those who have been in affected areas: http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/hurricanes/katrina/vaccrecdisplaced.asp
Regards,
Robert Brindley
Headmaster