Governor’s Humanitarian Award given to Catholic Charities!

Governor’s Humanitarian Award given toCatholic Charities for hurricane relief efforts

VENICE--Catholic Charities was the recipient of the prestigious 2007 Florida Governor’s Hurricane Conference Humanitarian Award for their disaster response efforts throughout the storm seasons of 2004 and 2005 and their continued efforts in assisting disaster victims in 2006. The honor was presented at an award ceremony on May 16 during the conference at the Broward County Convention Center.

Volunteer Florida and the Volunteer Florida Foundation nominated Catholic Charities for the honor at the conference themed “Building on Past Successes…Preparing for Future Challenges.” The Florida Governor’s Hurricane Conference focused on the unprecedented hurricane seasons of the past few years and the challenges they brought to the state’s ability to respond. The theme reflected on the wealth of experience that Florida has gained and the advancements that must be made.

“Catholic Charities was particularly cited for its emphasis on serving the most vulnerable among Florida’s citizens,” said Deacon Marcus Hepburn, emergency management specialist for the Florida Catholic Conference. Hepburn attended the award ceremony. “All seven Catholic Charities diocesan agencies in Florida were recognized for their work,” he said. Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice was a leader in relief efforts and should be especially proud, Hepburn added.

Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice typically serves a little over 40,000 clients annually but in 2004 almost 90,000 people received help from the organization through existing programs and seven hurricane recovery centers. Hurricane related services assisted over 46,000 individuals that year alone. In 2005, over 14,000 victims were helped with disaster relief.

“After Hurricane Wilma, we worked with the Collier County emergency management to develop a hurricane preparedness and response plan for the farm worker communities in that region, especially in Immokalee,” Routsis-Arroyo said. Catholic Charities also is participating in a project sponsored by the Florida Hurricane Relief Fund called Neighbors to the Rescue. This program puts neighbors in touch with neighbors to provide relief to individuals and families whose lives were disrupted by Hurricane Wilma. The Neighbors to the Rescue program connects volunteers, taps into community resources and creates virtual warehouses of available materials, goods, services, transportation and housing for those recovering from the storm.