Are we helping?

K has a post on her blog about local, recent experiences with hurricane Katrina evacuees. The current NC shelter is located in Cary, just a few minutes from her office. She comes home every day, checks the answering machine for a call from any of the volunteer services she’s called repeatedly, and then tells me about the dozens of people she saw drifting up and down the highway or parked at the gas station, with nowhere to go and nothing to do.

I’m a cynic, admittedly, but by now anyone would start to wonder. Are they being kept where they are to keep them off our suburban, southern streets? Why aren’t they being bussed or car-pooled to Pullen Park or the movies, to libraries or shopping malls? I’d go stir-crazy if I were trapped in one place like that for too long. I’m sure they have groups coming in, but are they helping them find the basic things like housing, transportation, employment?

And given the lack of response from that endeavor, what is it that people can do — should do — to assist? Is there anything?

I don’t know the answers there. And that bugs me.

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