Got Books?

With the six-month anniversary of Hurricane Katrina drawing near, you may want to consider donating your unneeded genealogy books or journals to the libraries affected by the disaster.

The New Orleans Public Library is now looking for book donations:

The New Orleans Public Library is asking for any and all hardcover and paperback books for people of all ages in an effort to restock the shelves after Katrina. The staff will assess which titles will be designated for its collections. The rest will be distributed to destitute families or sold for library fundraising. Please send your books to:

Rica A. Trigs, Public Relations
New Orleans Public Library
219 Loyola Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70112

If you tell the post office that they are for the library in New Orleans, they will give you the library rate which is slightly less than the book rate. [via NYFA Interactive]

The Louisiana State Library website has guidelines for material donations, and specifically asks for "Genealogy-Louisiana or otherwise."

[tagged: genealogy, family tree, ancestry]

New Orleans Long Plagued by Luters

From The (New London, Ct.) Day:

Luters From Louisiana Are Scattered, But Alive And Well

By CHARLES E. POTTER JR.
Day Staff Writer/Columnist, Police/Fire Reporter

Published on 9/10/2005

Rev. Marcus Luter, 71-year-old pastor of the Beulah Land Church of God In Christ United of Norwich, is one of 14 Luter children, born and raised in New Orleans. Some of them still live there. Many of them have children and grandchildren there.

While his prayers for the lives of the victims, living and lost, were plenty and powerful, Luter is grateful and thankful that his family members are all safe and accounted for in the after-wrath of Hurricane Katrina. And that's pretty phenomenal, actually. There's a lot of family.

“No, a hundred is not too high,” he said when I asked if that was a fair estimate of the number of relatives he had living in the Crescent City. “It's at least that many.”

[snip]

[Read the whole story]

Genealogist Comes to Aid of Katrina Survivor

From the San Antonio (Tex.) Express-News:

Genealogy buff finds elderly Katrina survivor's kin

Web Posted: 09/10/2005 12:00 AM CDT

Cindy Tumiel
Express-News Staff Writer

A San Antonio genealogy buff who "just had to do something to help," used her computer to track down the family of Ada Roppolo, a New Orleans nursing home resident evacuated to San Antonio last weekend with no medical records or history.

"I did it as a good Samaritan with hopes that God will bless me," said Barbara Harrell, who has been researching family trees for 35 years. "These people are in such dire straits and this lady looked so pretty."

Harrell read about Roppolo in Thursday's Express-News, which reported on how the elderly woman was airlifted to San Antonio last weekend with no identification aside from a yellowing wristband. That ID bracelet, it turns out, misspelled her name as Roppola.

But Harrell figured it out as she did her online detective work, which led her to Roppolo's nephew, David E. Duthu in St. Rose, La., about 20 miles west of New Orleans.

[snip]

A few hours of searching led to Roppolo's maiden name, Dermady, and to obituaries that had been published in the New Orleans Times-Picayune listing the names of her relatives. Harrell was able to find a phone number for Duthu and called him to let him know his aunt was safe in San Antonio.

[snip]

[Read the whole story]

General Genealogist Generosity

Seen on craigslist:

For all Katrina survivors ..... As a family historian and amateur photo restorer I would like to restore your old or damaged photos at no cost to you.

Please contact me about sending a photocopy or CD or scanned and emailed copy of your rescued photos and documents (Diplomas, Marriage Certs, Birth and Death Certs) Please do not send originals that could be lost in the mail.

God bless the survivors of Katrina. My prayers are with you.

R. Briggs

From AOL Genealogy Community News:

Help Hurricane Victims Recover Their Genealogy Research

We all know what a chore it is to find answers, locate records. Have you thought about all of the genealogists in the path of Katrina that fled their homes, leaving their computers and their data behind? Not today, but someday, they will be in a position to return to their genealogy, and have no idea where to start. A group has just been started to help. Please join!

Homepage: http://groups.google.com/group/Katrina-Genealogists
Group email: Katrina-Genealogists@googlegroups.com

technorati tags: genealogy

Space Cadet Approves of Astrodome's Use as Shelter

From the Houston (Tex.) Chronicle of Sept. 4, 2005:

Dome's use 'cosmically correct'

By RAD SALLEE
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

The daughter of Judge Roy Hofheinz, who persuaded Harris County to build the world's first domed stadium, expressed delight last week that what is now called the Reliant Astrodome was sheltering hurricane evacuees.

"I'm sure Daddy's ghost is still haunting the place," said Dene Hofheinz Anton. "He'll be there in spirit, I'm sure, to welcome everyone in."

[snip]

Anton said using the Astrodome for the hurricane victims is "cosmically correct." For one thing, she said, her ancestors settled in Louisiana, mostly around New Orleans, when they came from Europe.

[snip]

[Read the whole story]