On the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina assistance, SUNY Geneseo examines the impact our volunteering has made as we help rebuild sustainable communities. Read the award-winning full story and read homeowner profiles of Daisy Guyton and Gladys Daniels.
Almost immediately after news of Hurricane Katrina flooding hit, Geneseo students sought ways to do help, that would make a long-term difference.
“Everybody felt there must be something we could do, and that maybe we should think about going there,” says George Sullivan ’06, a foreign service officer with the U.S. Department of State in Brazil.
That desire created Livingston CARES, a nonprofit that links local volunteers with humanitarian projects — and a 10-year commitment to Biloxi and Harrison County, Miss.
Ten years is past, but Livingston CARES recently voted to keep going.
A decade in, Harrison County District 5 Supervisor Connie Rocko says direct Katrina recovery is complete, so crews will focus on construction projects for low-income residents, and other outreach for low-income needs. They work with the Back Bay Mission, which has a long tradition of social and economic justice. Beginning with the January 2016 group, students volunteer shifts in the mission’s soup kitchen, food pantry, and homeless center.
“Ten years later, our commitment is still strong," says Tom Matthews, Livingston CARES board chairman and SUNY Geneseo associate dean of leadership and service.
Watch Livingston CARES receive a special resolution at the Harrison County Board of Supervisors.
— Story by Kris Dreessen
— Photo by Keith Walters '11: Harrison County District 5 Supervisor Connie Rocko officially commends Livingston CARES for 10 years of service, with Tom Matthews, Livingston CARES board chairman and SUNY Geneseo associate dean of leadership and service.