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2- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday September 2, 2006 www.oakvillebeaver.com Rebuilding New Orleans far from complete PITCHING IN: A group of Habitat for Humanity volunteers put the finishing touches on a row of houses in New Orleans' Musicians Village. These are some of the more than 400 houses Habitat has built for those who lost their homes to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita at this time last year. By Krissie Rutherford OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF LLE KVLIine OA ario's Full Ont NEW 20 06 OF S E RSTOR UPE ! BRAND UZUKI S + SWIFT 97* $ t airbags, Dual fron t beams. c side impa player, h CD in-das more. and much $ 06 69 5* 9,99 FROM BRAND GRAND UZUKI S ITARA V NEW 20 lip Limited s ntial, differe electronic ntrol, o stability c WD e4 full tim more. and much $ 149 97* $ 19,995 FROM * * Lifetime oil change with every purchase. Freight, fees, lic. and taxes extra where applicable. Example borrow $10,000 at 8.4% finance for 72 months, payments are $81.83 bi-weekly G.O.B. is $2730.52 Sorry, No Rainchecks While Quantities Last. of Oakville 2219 Wyecroft Road, Oakville, ON L6L 5L7 905-469-2429 · Toll Free 1-866-229-3897 fax 905-469-4562 www.suzukioakville.com Tuesday marked exactly one year since Hurricane Katrina began the path of destruction that claimed hundreds of lives, destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes and left parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama under water. Less than a month later, Hurricane Rita added to the devastation, taking out parts of Texas in the process. While there are "pockets Oakville resident Ken Meinert of hope" in the rebuilding supported by the efforts of process, says Oakville's Ken Canadian volunteers," said Meinert, senior vice presi- Meinert. "We're really blessed with dent of Habitat for Humanity's rebuilding having financial support efforts, "There is still an and so many volunteers. enormous amount of work The volunteers are the most valuable commodity to us to be done. "We're disturbed to here." Not only has Habitat report there are still 200,000 families living in unstable been building new houses, housing conditions. There the organization, which are still tremendous areas in seeks to build simple, New Orleans and along the decent affordable housing in Mississippi coast that are partnership with people in years away from being need, has also "mucked out" more than 1,200 homes. rebuilt." That means they've More than 14,000 volunentered flooded teers from all "We're disturbed houses, taken over North possessions out, America have to report there shoveled out over the last are still 200,000 mud, carpet and year helped families living in torn down drybuild or begin unstable housing wall. more than 400 conditions." "So many of houses through these houses Habitat's Oakville resident were flooded, so Operation Ken Meinert, head of you can imagine Home Delivery, Habitat's Operation the communiwhich Meinert Home Delivery ties. Thousands is heading. of houses "What gives us energy and hope is seeing destroyed, some of them some communities slowly just full of mud and everycome back," he said in a thing under water," Meinert phone interview from explained. "When you finish mucking out a house, it's Louisiana. Beaumont Texas is one of down to the bare studs." That might sound like a those communities that's coming alive again. Nearly nightmare to many, but it's 30 new houses have been the sign of a new beginning built there in partnership for homeowners affected by Katrina and Rita. with Habitat. "It's so hopeful when the Bay St. Louis in Mississippi is another bright family comes and sees the spot. A small town, Habitat house ready to be built back has put up 14 new homes new," said Meinert. While he spends much of there. In a Bayou area in Mississippi, 51 new homes his time finding and allocat See Helping page 5 have been built, "largely