Devastation of Galveston from '08 Hurricane Ike Needs Renewed Focus

Hurricane Ike hit Galveston, Texas on Sept. 13, 2008 and became the third costliest hurricane ever in the U.S. It wasn't long after that folks turned their attention to the historic presidential election and the destruction of Galveston quickly became a story of the past.

Many affected homeowners were ripped off, denied funding, or had no insurance. Many were elderly or under-educated about who to call or how to get repairs.

Fast forward two years, and there are still thousands of folks living in devastated houses without hot water or working toilets, with holes in walls or ceilings, and living in mere shells of houses that have been gutted. And now, the city is beginning to fine those who haven't been able to fix their homes when in so many cases, they have had no means to do so.

As of December 2010, all ministry organizations related to hurricane relief have left Galveston except for one: The One Mission Initiative: Galveston (OM:G).

Led by Richmond-natives and personal friends Pete and Lorie DeWorken, they moved from their home in Virginia into a small trailer with their three daughters, and they refuse to leave the people of Galveston living in those conditions and living without hope. They, along with the OM:G staff, continue to host and partner volunteers with needy homeowners and to ask for donations of supplies and money to get the work done.

“Our mission is to bring volunteers to Galveston to not only provide much needed help, labor and support to the community here, but to also provide love, hope and encouragement.” They also do community outreach, partner with local organizations, visit home-bound residents, do prayer walks, feed the homeless, and host vacation Bible schools.

Two plus years after the hurricane, the people of Galveston need the gift of renewed attention. And they still need money and hands to ensure safe, secure, sanitary housing.

You can help by donating your time or money, by sponsoring a family, or by organizing a team of folks to travel to Galveston to help with repairs. Contact OM:G: info@onemissiongalveston.org or call (409) 795-9342.

Thanks and Best Regards!

Liz Baker

For more information:

Pete DeWorken's Invitation to Serve

One Mission Initiative: Galveston Official Site

Religious Herald Article

KHOU Article

P.S.:

My husband visited Galveston a couple of weeks ago. I asked him to share some of his thoughts:

“You might think that Galveston is an island community full of wealth and beauty. Not so. Many of the folks are poor and/or elderly. Many of the houses that people are living in literally still have holes in the walls from the hurricane.”

“One gentleman I saw put plastic bags on the studs on the interior of his house to give it the "feeling" of walls in the absence of real ones.”

“One lady, after two years, just got hot water. Some of the volunteers from One Mission saw a guy with a hot water heater on his trailer. The volunteers noticed that it was the same kind from the lady's house. They got the part off of the heater, installed it on hers, and now she's got hot water again.”

“There are still a lot of people not living in safe, secure, sanitary housing. A lot of these people have been taken advantage of and ripped off by contractors, or they're waiting for money from some government entity that hasn't shown up yet...after two years.”

“Some of these people are living in houses that are just...well...let me put it to you this way: I don't know anyone who would want to live in them. And people are living in them. Some of the houses were in bad shape before the hurricane, and then the storm came in and just devastated them. A lot of the houses are boarded up on the bottom level because of the flood damage. So the folks just live upstairs."

"I think a lot of these people just didn't know what to do. Let me give you an example: If this had happened to my grandmother, she wouldn't have known the first thing to do. She would have been a perfect target for one of these contractors because she had no true idea of the cost of things. I mean, I'm not an expert, but I'd know who'd to call and would have a pretty good idea if someone was ripping me off. I think a lot of these folks don't know what to do or where to go.”

“You tend to think that the public services are there to help you. But in a lot of ways they're not, or they don't have the capacity or resources. Or they have their own agenda. They're not always advocating on behalf of the homeowners. But One Mission does: 100%.”

“Some of these folks had homes where they couldn't afford home owners insurance. It was their parent's house and it's paid for and they're on fixed income and the choice comes to either getting home owners insurance or putting food on the table. When they considered that they'd never had a problem with a hurricane (before Ike) and never needed home owners insurance, well they put food on the table.”

"I truly know that Pete and Lorie have a heart for the people of Galveston and want to see these people get back up on their feet. They're not advocating that the people have new $300k houses, but definitely get them at least back to where they were before the storm."

"They (the gov’t) are working on HUD homes and duplexes, not a huge amount...low cost...and it's a help, but there's no way the small number that have been completed can address such a great, widespread need. A lot of the people One Mission are trying to help couldn't even afford those, unfortunately."

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