Fall 2006 Issue
One Year after Katrina: Celebrating Progress and Promise on the Gulf Coast
CDC Foundation donors and partners usually learn about the successful outcomes of programs they support through reports and photos. But on August 29, the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, a group of Foundation friends and donors traveled to Bay St. Louis in Hancock County, Mississippi, to witness firsthand what their contributions to the Foundation’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund helped achieve.
On a whirlwind tour, the group drove through Bay St. Louis and observed the destruction still visible one year after the storm. Then they arrived at the Hancock County Health Department where they visited the shell of the former health department building, which was covered in a thick layer of mud caking the floor, chairs and anything left standing. The group then viewed a Quonset hut (essentially a big tent) that the health department team had occupied after the storm. Finally, the CDC Foundation group joined other guests enjoying a reception and building dedication ceremony outside the new Hancock County Health Department building.
The new modular health facility, and another in Jackson County, were acquired by the Mississippi State Health Department through gifts from generous CDC Foundation donors.
“Today we are gathered to celebrate progress – progress achieved when the government, corporate and nonprofit sectors work together to meet the health needs of communities in crisis,” said Phil Jacobs, CDC Foundation board chair, as he welcomed guests to the event.
Following remarks from Senator Trent Lott and Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour, Jacobs and CDC Foundation President Charles Stokes recognized CDC Foundation partners whose contributions to the Foundation’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund enabled the Foundation to quickly meet the needs of CDC, the Mississippi State Health Department and other state and local public health agencies on the Gulf Coast.
Following Katrina, the CDC Foundation used donor contributions to provide grants to these agencies to help meet the immediate health needs of evacuees, to support public health responders on the frontlines and to rebuild or replace buildings and equipment lost in the storm. Jacobs and Stokes gave special recognition to Kaiser Permanente, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and GE for making major investments in these efforts.
They also recognized the staff of the Hancock County Health Department and other public health teams, who, despite great personal loss, continued to provide critical public health services to their communities.
“We are extremely grateful to the CDC Foundation for coordinating this effort,” said Dr. Brian Amy, Mississippi State Health Officer. “Mississippi’s local health departments are the first line of defense in protecting the health and safety of our citizens. One year ago, our public health teams faced one of the largest disasters this country has ever experienced. With our partners’ help, today we are recovering and can again serve our customers in a safe and accessible facility.”