<sh>Quilting for Katrina Victims
<bt>On Tuesday, Sept. 6, the McLean chapter of Quilters Unlimited gathered for a service bee at the McLean Baptist Church and finished 21 lap quilts. Mary Pace, chairman of the service committee, delivered these quilts and 11 more to the Artful Quilter's fabric store in Centreville. These and other donated quilts will be delivered to Our Lady of the Lake Medical Center, pediatric section, and the Women's Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, both in Baton Rouge, La. These hospitals are caring for infant and children evacuees from Metropolitan New Orleans.
<sh>Bake Sale Raises Over $4k
<bt>Apparently 12-year-old Great Falls resident Melanie Kent was on to something when she decided to hold a bake sale to raise money for the Humane Society's Hurricane Katrina disaster relief efforts. On Monday, September 5, Kent and her friends managed to sell enough baked treats to raise an impressive $955 in three hours. She also collected $160 from her neighbors and her veterinarian, and that combined with three matching contributions made for a grand total of $4,115 for her chosen cause. Further donations are being accepted. Checks can be made out to the Humane Society of the United States and can be mailed to Melanie Kent at 10105 Walker Woods Drive, Great Falls, VA 22066.
<sh>Katrina Relief Dinner
<bt>The restaurant Amerigo's will be having a benefit dinner Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. and will contribute 50 percent of sales to the American Red Cross. The evening will feature "Dixie Land" music performed by the Jefferson Street Strutters. The cost is $50 per guest. Amerigo's is located at 1381-A Beverly Road, McLean. Call 703-893-6886.
<sh>'Rock for Relief' Concert
<bt>The State Theatre will team with radio station Z104 to present a “Capital Scene Rock for Relief” benefit concert Sunday, Sept. 18 from 4-10 p.m. The concert will feature eight local artists. Tickets for the entire event are $10, with proceeds donated to the American Red Cross Hurricane Katrina disaster relief fund. Featured performers include Barakus, Evenout, Michael Jantz, Junkfood, Lloyd Dobler Effect, Viki Nova, Sharif and Wonderjack. The concert is sponsored by Z104 and will be hosted by the station’s midday personality, Jenni Chase. For tickets and information visit www.thestatetheatre.com or call 703-237-0300. The State Theatre is located at 220 North Washington St. in downtown Falls Church City.
<sh>Disaster Relief for Pets
<bt>Animal Nannies of McLean (ANOM), a professional petsitting company, is spearheading a local effort to raise funds for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' (ASPCA) Disaster Relief Fund. Donations will help the ASPCA provide food, shelter, rescue, relocation and medical care to animals still in the city. Checks may be made out to ANOM with a memo for “ASPCA Hurricane Relief.” Animal Nannies will contribute $50 plus an additional $5 for each donation received by Sept. 21. Mail checks to: Animal Nannies of McLean, P.O. Box 6961, McLean, VA 22106. Call 703-749-9000.
<sh>Housing Victims of Hurricane Katrina
<bt>For those who have expressed interest in housing Katrina evacuees, the Virginia Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) is taking the lead in coordinating housing for flood victims. VOAD is a consortium of faith-based organizations. Locally, you can contact:
Northern Virginia VOAD, Trish Redmond, 703.369.5292, ext. 24, tredmond@volunteerprincewilliam.org
Diocese of Arlington, Liz Wellborn, 703.385.9847,
jimeliz@earthlink.net
Episcopal Church, Diocese of Virginia, Rev. Pete Gustin,
703.434,4152, peteg01@direcway.com
Presbyterian Church, Lee Watenpaugh, 703.680.1164,
rlwatenp@comcast.net
Federation of Virginia Food Bank, 703.924.4064, fedvafb@verizon.net
Faith-based organizations wishing to coordinate housing for flood
victims can contact the Virginia Department of Social Services hotline, 1-800-777-8293. Individuals should work through their own faith-based organization or one of the above VOAD groups. You can find more information on Virginia efforts at www.vaemergency.com and at the Virginia Public
Inquiry Center, 1-8668804288.
<sh>Charities Needing funds
<bt>FEMA listed the following agencies as needing cash to assist hurricane victims:
* American Red Cross, 800-HELP-NOW (435-7669) English, 800-257-7575 Spanish
* America's Second Harvest, 800-344-8070
* Adventist Community Services, 800-381-7171
* Catholic Charities USA, 800-919-9338
* Christian Disaster Response, 941-956-5183 or 941-551-9554
* Christian Reformed World Relief Committee, 800-848-5818
* Church World Service, 800-297-1516
* Convoy of Hope, 417-823-8998
* Lutheran Disaster Response, 800-638-3522
* Mennonite Disaster Service, 717-859-2210
* Nazarene Disaster Response, 888-256-5886
* Operation Blessing, 800-436-6348
* Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, 800-872-3283
* Salvation Army, 800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769)
* Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief, 800-462-8657, Ext. 6440
* United Methodist Committee on Relief, 800-554-8583
<sh>Finding Best Places to Give
<bt>These are two web sites in which you can find charities listed.
www.give.org — managed by the Better Business Bureau
www.guidestar.org — managed by Philanthropic Research
<sh>Virginia Baptist Churches Pitch In
<bt>The Virginia Baptist Mission Board is challenging its churches to house at least 500 evacuees from Hurricane Katrina and raise $1 million for disaster relief. For information and to make donations, call 800-255-2428 or 804-915-5000 or e-mail disasterrelief@vbmb.org. Donations may be mailed to Disaster Relief, Virginia Baptist Mission Board, PO Box 8568, Richmond, VA 23226 or made online via credit card at www.vbmb.org. Make checks payable to the Virginia Baptist Mission Board and designated for disaster relief. Churches may become involved in housing evacuees by going online to www.vbmb.org, clicking on "Response to Hurricane Katrina" and filling out the Katrina Relief/Church Housing Information Form. Churches are requested to wait until noon on Sept. 8 to enter their information. As the Baptist General Association is alerted by state officials of arrivals of evacuees, churches will be contacted. Those without Internet access, call 800-255-2428 and ask for Kristin Fogg, ext. 8226.