Archive | September 2005

Pray for Wisdom

Sep4

FEMA and the Red Cross are obviously “making it up as they go along” in regards to Katrina relief efforts, not that I blame them. As everyone has been saying over and over, the situation is unprecedented. The Red Cross shelter near us at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church has been serving over 300 storm victims all this week. From their website:

Late Friday night we were suddenly informed that the American Red Cross, FEMA, and the authorities charged with managing the national response to the Katrina disaster had made the difficult decision to close the community based shelters in the Houston area and consolidate relief efforts and resources at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston. Our dedicated shelter team, the local Red Cross folks and our staff shared our frustration and tears over this abrupt change in direction. In the past few days we had been told to plan for as little as a week or two of sheltering to as long as 3 months. Our community has responded with overwhelming generosity, bringing our shelter up to speed as one of the finest very quickly. By the grace of God and through the generosity of the community we have provided housing, meals, material needs and care for nearly 400 resident guests and over 1,000 other displaced people in the last week. Consolidating shelters will permit the available resources to be managed and deployed more effectively.

Eldest Daughter and I were discussing this decision this afternoon. It seemed to both of us that community-based efforts where individuals could connect with individuals instead of being “warehoused” in the Astrodome or another convention center were preferable. In fact, I would expect the Red Cross officials to be encouraging families to house families and churches to house families so that the larger facilities could be cleared as soon as possible. But, as I told my daughter, I have no expertise or experience in the area of crisis or disaster relief, so I defer to those who do. I understand wanting to make sure that everyone receives the services they need. Anyway, it seems that the Red Cross changed their minds:

Updated 9/3 at 9:05PM: Just as the school busses provided by CCISD rolled in this morning to transfer our shelter residents, we received new information from the crisis management officials. We were “turned back on” and asked to immediately prepare for the return of our guests and the addition of more. So as of this evening we are at our current shelter capacity and our guests are enjoying 400 lbs. of fine Texas Bar-B-Q!.

Did anyone ask the peo0ple from Louisiana what they would prefer to do? Are they still free citizens with the right to make their own decisions? Churches helping refugees to survive and get back on their feet, this is what we need. At least, it seems so to me. But I’m no expert.

Katrina Questions

Sep4

Everybody says that it’s too early to start pointing fingers and assigning blame for the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina relief. Well, I’ve been helping with relief efforts on a very small scale, and I will continue to help. However, while I and my family continue to offer our money, time and energy to those who have lost their homes and material goods and, in some cases, their hope, I have some questions. If anyone knows the answers to these questions, I would truly, honestly like to know:

1. Whose responsibility was it to order the evacuation of New Orleans and surrounding areas and to provide means of evacuation for those who had no transportation, Mayor Nagin or President Bush?
2. Whose responsibility was it, after people were told to go to the Superdome and to the NO Convention Center for refuge from the storm, to make sure there was adequate food, water and security for those people? Mayor Nagin or President Bush?
3. I have read that there was only one day’s supply of food and water in the Superdome. Is this true?
4. Were other cities (Dallas, Houston, etc.) asked to prepare to receive refugees from the storm before Katrina hit? Or did those cities simply offer to help after the refugees began pouring in and after they saw that the city of New Orleans had no ability to cope with its own problems whatsoever? (Not to imply that we begrudge the help. I’m sure that the people of NO would do the same for us were the roles reversed. I’m not so sure, however, I would trust the city government of of New Orleans to do anything.)
5. Is there any way, and are there any plans, to rebuild New Orleans on higher ground? If Holland can build dykes that will hold back the ocean, why can’t New Orleans do something similar? I really want to know. I’m not an engineer, so maybe I’m asking a stupid question. If so, tell me why. I don’t mind being corrected or informed.
6. Has the mayor of New Orleans done anything constructive either to avert this crisis or to alleviate the suffering of the poor people left in New Orleans? Or has he spent this entire time cursing at the feds and raving like a maniac?
7. Does anyone who criticizes any level of government in this crisis, local state, or federal, have any actual examples of things you would have done differently?
8. Why has all the new focused on New Orleans instead of Biloxi or Gulfport or Hattiesburg, Missisippi? Is it because these communities were less damaged by the storm, because the flooding was much more severe in New Orleans, because New Orleans is bigger, or because New Orleans was so mismanaged and poorly governed?
9. Finally, what have we learned? What will be different when a hurricane destroys Galveston or Mobile? Or even Houston?

Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Summer 2005

Sep2

I received this magazine, free to review, several weeks ago, and it’s taken me almost this long to read the entire summer 2005 issue so that I could write my review. So the first observation I have to make is that with this magazine you get your money’s worth in information and content. It’s about 200 pages long with ads, but lots more meaty homeschool content.

This summer 2005 issue of The Old Schoolhouse has dual themes: Homeschooling Special Needs Children and International Homeschooling. There are also several articles about homeschool blogging and THE hottest place in homeschool blogging these days, homeschoolblogger.com.

The articles on special needs children include information on homeschooling children with Down’s Syndrome, autism, ADD or ADHD, and other disabilities that may interfere with learning. These are practical, helpful stories of families who are homeschooling children with these needs. There’s also an article on homeschooling gifted children. One of the most interesting pieces in the magazine was about homeschooled art prodigy, Amelia Harper, a ten year old artist whose artworks have sold for more than $50,000 and whose paintings have appeared in print in Time Magazine and in other publications. You can see some samples of her work here. In contrast, there’s a story about the birth and life of Baby Hope MaryAnne Wuehler, who was diagnosed in the womb with a possibly terminal genetic problem. You can read the story of God’s grace in the lives of Hope MaryAnne and her parents and in the lives of many other children and parents of children with health issues. The message that comes through in both articles is that God gives us the children He has for us as blessings, with all their gifts and issues, and our job is to teach, encourage, and remain faithful.

Have you kept up with homeschooling trends in Japan? Switzerland? The United Kingdom? This issue of The Old Schoolhouse features stories about homeschoolers in each of those countries and more. There are advantages and disadvatages to homeschooling in other countries. Sarah Bachmann says, “Swiss chocolates keep the spirits up.” I can only imagine.

If none of the topic I’ve mentioned so far have tickled your fancy, there’s more. Sign language, summer travel, entrepreneurship, arts and crafts, living history, communication skills, storytelling (by Jim Weiss), natural foods, herbs and medicines, exchange students–all these topics are featured in articles written from a Christian perspective mostly by homeschool moms with expertise in these areas. And there are product reviews, contests, and prizes.

A couple of the articles recommend the books and ministry of Michael and Deb Pearl, authors of To Train Up a Child. I have major reservations about the Pearls’ ministry. Although the part of the book excerpted in The Old Schoolhouse emphasizes accepting your husband as he is and encouraging him to fulfill God’s purpose in his life– excellent spiritual advice–the book itself is not one I would recommend.

I almost forgot to mention the interview with Debra Bell, author of The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. Now there’s a book I can recommend. Then, there’s also the field trip through the gardens of England. And . . . You’ll just need to subscribe to The Old Schoolhouse to get all the goodies that are a part of this magazine. By the time you finish squeezing all the goodness out of your first issue, in about four months, there should be another issue ripe for squeezing. A year’s subscription is only $22.00 in the U.S.