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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Advertisement Email Story to a Friend November 21, 2005 Group plans Katrina-relief trip By PARIS ACHEN Mail Tribune When Hurricane Katrina pummeled New Orleans Aug. 29, Ashland resident Stuart O’Neill remembers watching news coverage and yearning to help relieve residents’ misery. Three months later, O’Neill and other Southern Oregon residents have organized a group to do just that. The Southern Oregon Gulf Coast Relief Network will send about 30 members, including O’Neill, to New Orleans Dec. 2 to volunteer for the Common Ground Collective, a grassroots aid organization that formed in the wake of the hurricane. "Most people had some sort of impulse to help," O’Neill said. "I certainly did. Many of us since then have tried to figure out a way to make a contribution. Hearing about Common Ground has been inspiring and gave us a focus to know we can go there and be useful and not get in the way." During its three-week mission, the group expects to distribute aid, pick up debris, gut and rebuild houses, and work in the Common Ground clinic in the west New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers. Advertisement Algiers, some inner-city wards and some outlying communities have been largely neglected by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Red Cross, said Jacksonville resident Peter O’Connell, who volunteered for Common Ground in September and plans to go on the Southern Oregon mission. Made up of local, national and international volunteers, Common Ground stepped in to deliver relief to the poor district of about 57,000 residents, he said. "Common Ground is rooted in the community," O’Neill said. "The affected folks are the ones leading the relief effort, which is a much better model than a federal agency. I’ve been amazed and inspired by how effective they’ve been." The Southern Oregon group hopes to raise about $7,500 in donations to cover the expenses of the journey and materials, he said. Protective gear and building materials are also needed, he said. A dessert and music fundraiser is set for 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1. at The Mobius, 281 Fourth St. in Ashland. Admission is $5. About half of the group plans to travel to New Orleans on a biodiesel bus owned by the Oxygen Collective, an Ashland-based conservation group. Others plan to fly. O’Neill said the network hopes to send volunteers to New Orleans at regular intervals in the coming years. "They are going to need our help for a long time," he said. Founded by New Orleans resident Malik Rahim, Common Ground operates a clinic, a mobile clinic and three distribution centers in the city’s Ninth Ward. Its volunteer force fluctuates between 30 and 300, said Kerul Dyer, an Ashland resident who has been working with organization in New Orleans for three months. "I think it’s great the people from Ashland are so enthusiastic about offering hope to the people of New Orleans, and I think they’ll be very well received," she said. Reach reporter Paris Achen at 776-4496 or e-mail Group plans Katrina-relief trip ">[email protected] . How can Iget involved? Jacksonville resident Peter O’Connell, a member of the Southern Oregon Gulf Coast Relief Network, will speak about class and race issues related to hurricane relief in New Orleans at 7 p.m. this evening at the Stevenson Union, Southern Oregon University, 1250 Siskiyou Blvd., Room 330, Ashland. O’Connell helped deliver aid to New Orleans in September and October with the Common Ground Collective and plans to accompany the Southern Oregon Gulf Coast Relief Network on its mission to the city. A fundraiser for the Southern Oregon Gulf Coast Relief Network’s mission to New Orleans will be held at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, at The Mobius, 281 Fourth St., Ashland. The event includes a dessert buffet and music by DJ Lava Machete. Admission is $5. Monetary and material donations to the Southern Oregon Gulf Coast Relief Network’s mission to New Orleans can be made by calling 541-951-5105. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers Southern Oregon Loans California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Pharmacy Advertisement s