Since the April 20th Deepwater Horizon explosion, the families of Louisiana’s coastal parishes have been made vulnerable. Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans has been on the ground since May 1, providing help and hope in this time of crisis.

BP recently announced that it will be providing the state with $15 million to make mental health services available to those affected by the spill through Catholic Charities’ counseling services. While this funding will help the residents of Louisiana’s coastal parishes to develop long-term coping mechanisms for dealing with the effects of the spill, many families are struggling with making ends meet on a day-to-day basis.

This project will ensure that families living in affected areas have access to basic necessities as they face great economic hardship. Become the Citizen Philanthropist for this project, and provide emergency food and living assistance to fishing families directly affected by the Gulf Oil Spill.

Over 70,000 people live in the coastal parishes of southeastern Louisiana, where seafood and oil businesses make up the area’s most important economic industries. The economy of southeast Louisiana was dealt a major blow in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when half of the industry’s shrimping and shellfish fleet were lost and offshore oil wells damaged. When the Deepwater Horizon explosion occurred, many families were just getting back on their feet from the losses they’d suffered as a result of the hurricane. The vitality of the seafood and oil industries in coastal parishes is closely linked to that of others that support the seafood business, namely bait shops, restaurants, and ports and docks. It is estimated that because of the oil spill and the moratorium on deepwater drilling, Louisiana will lose a minimum of 8,000 jobs in the coming months.

Community member details not available yet.

Direct Impact of Your Project

Catholic Charities’ Gulf Oil Spill Relief Direct Assistance will ensure that families will receive food from local grocery stores, utility, mortgage or rental assistance for families who are currently unable to make ends meet

• $500 will provide 5 families with groceries for a week
• $200 will provide a family with direct assistance in the form of housing and utility assistance for 30 days.
• This project will enable Catholic Charities to provide 2400 families with groceries and 800 families with direct assistance—over 8,032 people.

Extended Impact on Your Partner Community

Emergency food and living assistance will also help fishing families by:

• Residents affected by the oil spill will be able to meet urgent needs as they wait for claims payments and prepare to make long-term adjustments
• Donations will support local grocery stores and food outlets and fuel the economy in the area
• Easing stress on families at home
• Providing much needed aid in addition to providing counseling services to 6000 individuals in 11 affected parishes.