By Terri Rimmer
Camp Sister Spirit, the campground ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, has put out another urgent plea for help.
“We knew when we began to help the victims of Katrina it would be a long recovery,” said Pat Cobb of the Southern Womyns Festival who has been assisting with relief efforts. “We are asking people to continue to send funds and help to Camp Sister Spirit. We can tell by an email we got from Andie at the camp that the Bush Administration and FEMA are not doing the job. We donate and give money in so many ways, at Publix, Walgreens; etc. But if you send the money directly to Camp Sister Spirit you know you are helping women and their local community.”
Cobb said there will be no middle man or CEO getting a cut of the money sent and that donations will go directly to the survival of a women’s campground in Mississippi. Cobb is appealing to all, that if they have an extra $5 or $10 this week to send it to Camp Sister Spirit because it will add up.
“They appreciate every donation,” said Cobb.
Andie, of Camp Sister Spirit, said the camp is up to having distributed about a million and a half pounds of food now and still working.
“We just had friends come from Pennsylvania, Leda and Stacey who brought a horse trailer full of things,” said Andie. “Most of the food came from an Amish community in Pennsylvania. Our pantry was getting low and it is restocked once more. Thank God.”
Andie said FEMA came to visit the camp but would not do anything to help them.
“I ran the camp last year on $15,000 which is way below the poverty level for a single person much less an organization, though small, manages to do big things,” she said. “I barely paid the electric bill last year much less an insurance note. FEMA says we have to take out an SBA loan. I can’t make payments on this.”
Andie said FEMA looked at her losses in her small home that entailed stress cracks in all the walls, half of her roof laying in the backyard, and water damage all over.
“They decided that my damages were worth $697,” she said. “It made me cry. I can’t even get the rest of the roof off and hauled out of here for that much less replace the roof that is laying in my backyard. I didn’t vote for these a—holes so that is my only saving grace. Without the help of private donors we would be screwed three ways till Tuesday. I really don’t know what we’re going to do.”
Andie said all of the camp’s income is “shot” for the rest of the year because she had to cancel camp events due to damage.
“Our office is in two pieces thanks to a 40-foot tree, the night stage is trashed, three cabins got hit by trees, our security gate is trashed, and just removing the downed trees and debris is going to cost an ungodly amount of money,” said Andie. “We are under a burn ban for another month as it has rained one time since Katrina hit us. We are a great big cinder box. It is scary. And FEMA sends us a check for $700. This is enough to make you ashamed to be an American citizen. It breaks my heart and my story is only one of hundreds of thousands of people this is happening to.”
The camp was scheduled to have a work weekend Oct. 8th. The Gay-Straight Alliance at USM and the Amnesty group at USM were planning on coming.
“Without the love and support of people I would have surely lost my faith,” said Andie.
Donations to the cause may be mailed to Camp Sister Spirit, Box 12, Ovett, MS 39464. The phone number is 601-344-1411.
Camp Sister Spirit, the campground ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, has put out another urgent plea for help.
“We knew when we began to help the victims of Katrina it would be a long recovery,” said Pat Cobb of the Southern Womyns Festival who has been assisting with relief efforts. “We are asking people to continue to send funds and help to Camp Sister Spirit. We can tell by an email we got from Andie at the camp that the Bush Administration and FEMA are not doing the job. We donate and give money in so many ways, at Publix, Walgreens; etc. But if you send the money directly to Camp Sister Spirit you know you are helping women and their local community.”
Cobb said there will be no middle man or CEO getting a cut of the money sent and that donations will go directly to the survival of a women’s campground in Mississippi. Cobb is appealing to all, that if they have an extra $5 or $10 this week to send it to Camp Sister Spirit because it will add up.
“They appreciate every donation,” said Cobb.
Andie, of Camp Sister Spirit, said the camp is up to having distributed about a million and a half pounds of food now and still working.
“We just had friends come from Pennsylvania, Leda and Stacey who brought a horse trailer full of things,” said Andie. “Most of the food came from an Amish community in Pennsylvania. Our pantry was getting low and it is restocked once more. Thank God.”
Andie said FEMA came to visit the camp but would not do anything to help them.
“I ran the camp last year on $15,000 which is way below the poverty level for a single person much less an organization, though small, manages to do big things,” she said. “I barely paid the electric bill last year much less an insurance note. FEMA says we have to take out an SBA loan. I can’t make payments on this.”
Andie said FEMA looked at her losses in her small home that entailed stress cracks in all the walls, half of her roof laying in the backyard, and water damage all over.
“They decided that my damages were worth $697,” she said. “It made me cry. I can’t even get the rest of the roof off and hauled out of here for that much less replace the roof that is laying in my backyard. I didn’t vote for these a—holes so that is my only saving grace. Without the help of private donors we would be screwed three ways till Tuesday. I really don’t know what we’re going to do.”
Andie said all of the camp’s income is “shot” for the rest of the year because she had to cancel camp events due to damage.
“Our office is in two pieces thanks to a 40-foot tree, the night stage is trashed, three cabins got hit by trees, our security gate is trashed, and just removing the downed trees and debris is going to cost an ungodly amount of money,” said Andie. “We are under a burn ban for another month as it has rained one time since Katrina hit us. We are a great big cinder box. It is scary. And FEMA sends us a check for $700. This is enough to make you ashamed to be an American citizen. It breaks my heart and my story is only one of hundreds of thousands of people this is happening to.”
The camp was scheduled to have a work weekend Oct. 8th. The Gay-Straight Alliance at USM and the Amnesty group at USM were planning on coming.
“Without the love and support of people I would have surely lost my faith,” said Andie.
Donations to the cause may be mailed to Camp Sister Spirit, Box 12, Ovett, MS 39464. The phone number is 601-344-1411.