September 12, 2005

Hurricane affects employees; co-workers gather to help

When Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast Aug. 29, some employees felt the blow directly in their hearts and homes here in Tempe.

Since then, many of their fellow employees have been reaching out to help during their time of need.

Shelley Haydel, an assistant professor in the School of Life Sciences, grew up in the New Orleans area, in Jefferson and St. Charles Parishes, and had her extended family displaced in the storm. For several days she had no contact with her parents, siblings, and other family members who stayed in the region during the hurricane.

“Tuesday after the hurricane hit, I had never felt so worried, numb, and helpless in my life,” she says. “The only time I really felt better was when I was able to get through on the phone to find out that everyone was okay.”

Once she made contact, Haydel served as a communications commander, contacting various family members spread throughout the region – including 13 packed into one home in St. Charles Parish.

“All of my family members survived the storm, and we know where everyone is. Considering all of the devastation and lives lost, we are definitely grateful,” she says. “My family is doing as well as can be expected. I am very proud of them.”

Several members of her family eventually made it out and relocated to different areas, including Baton Rouge, Houston, and Austin.

Other members of her family are trying to decide on their next step, as some of them – her mother and stepfather, in particular – probably do not have jobs anymore.

At least in the short term, it’s possible that they will join Haydel in Phoenix.

“One thing about the New Orleans region is that a lot of people are born and raised there and don’t ever leave,” she says. “I am really the only one in my family to leave. Now everything is wide open for them, even though I know none of them want to relocate permanently. To be honest, I don’t want them to leave because I love the New Orleans area.”

Aside from her family, Haydel is working to help a large family of about 25 from New Orleans that she has known for years. That family lost everything and is now spread throughout Louisiana and Texas.

Haydel is taking at least four members of the family into her home. She has received a detailed list of clothing and other items the other family members need.

Although she has been with ASU for just two months, she says there has been an amazing outpouring of support from her colleagues at the School of Life Sciences and the Biodesign Institute. Various staff members in both groups have worked to help fill Haydel’s supply list – and to help any others from the region.

“Everyone has been very welcoming and offering assistance,” she says. “It’s gratifying to know that I have only been here for two months and people are still reaching out.”

One fellow Biodesign Institute researcher who has offered assistance is Dana Burshell. Burshell also had family – including her parents – in the region, but they were able to evacuate to safety. Her parents have now joined her in the Valley.

“They had evacuated and were safe,” she says. “They decided to clear out and give up their hotel space. My dad is planning on going back to help, and my mom wants to volunteer with the evacuees here.”

Burshell says one of the best ways to help the region is to give to established charities, such as the Red Cross. But on a smaller scale, she is hoping to help people she knows directly, including Haydel’s friends.

“Shelley is part of our group,” she says. “We need to reach out to our friends and family, and help those who are here and need our help.”

To aid in the effort, the Biodesign Institute is posting Haydel’s list on its Web site (www.biodesign.asu.edu) and providing a drop box in the Biodesign Building lobby. The School of Life Sciences will also maintain a drop box in the second-floor lunchroom in Life Sciences E-wing.

David Butler , associate VP for Human Resources is leading the university’s effort to coordinate temporary housing, emergency health care services, and primary and secondary education needs for faculty and staff members who have family members who have been directly affected.

Since the hurricane made landfall, HR has developed a housing registry where ASU employees can offer housing assistance for faculty, students and family members of staff, faculty and students who have been displaced by the hurricane.

Arrangements have also been made with the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale to offer medical care to displaced family members of ASU employees, and with the Tempe Union High School District and the Arizona State Department of Education to provide assistance to displaced families who need to enroll children into school or need preschool child care.

Butler says the response from the ASU community has been wonderful.

"We were able to place a single mother with two young children with a family that has a beautiful guest home," Butler says. "The woman is related to an ASU employee and was a graduate student in the gulf area before she was displaced by the hurricane. We were able to get here registered with classes at ASU and now she has a place to stay and try to rebuild her life."

Anyone who knows of any employee with family in the region needing assistance can contact Butler at (480) 965-9650 or (david.butler@asu.edu).

Gary Campbell, garycamp@asu.edu
(480) 965-7209