Volunteer Page

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This information was compiled from answers to questions by previous volunteer groups. If you are bringing a group here, please read all of this information, and direct any further questions to our Disaster Recovery Volunteer, (504) 733-1644.

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Summary

Purpose, Requirements, Accommodations, How to Make a Reservation

Staying at Parkway


Sleeping room, Dining room, Food, Kitchen, Towels and T-shirts, Laundry, Showers, Internet, TV/DVD, Parking, Visiting with Parkway's congregation, Donations, What to pack

Work

Project Homecoming, Preparation, Projects, Tools, Daily schedule, Weekly schedule, Working with other people and organizations, Age and health restrictions

Forms

Contact our Disaster Relief Coordinator by e-mail (ParkwayPDA@ppc.nocoxmail.com) or phone (504-733-1644) to have the reservation, skills assessment, and health & liability forms mailed, faxed or e-mailed to you.

About the Area

Location, Weather, Crime, Entertainment

Hurricane Preparation

Summary

Purpose
This mission brings relief and hope to people, by helping them in the process of rebuilding their storm- or flood-damaged homes. The immediate impact of this work on the tired and anxious people served is immense; many of them are financially or emotionally unable to start the rebuilding process on their own. This also serves the greater community as each neighborhood is improved and people are encouraged to return home.

Requirements
Although experienced carpenters and tradespeople are great to have volunteer with us, we accept volunteers of all skill levels! Project Homecoming now has construction assistants on the work sites, and they can guide and instruct inexperienced workers. Gutting and construction are hard work, made more difficult by the heat and the humidity. Volunteers should be in good general health and up to date on vaccinations. All participants must submit a Health and Liability Form along with a copy of any health insurance cards before beginning work. More information on forms. YOUTH GROUPS please see more information on age and health restrictions.

Accommodations
Our church is located in a relatively undamaged and safe area, with plenty of stores and restaurants nearby. We can house up to 30 volunteers, providing an air conditioned room to sleep in, a modern commercial kitchen, restrooms, showers, towels and t-shirts, 30 air mattresses, and limited laundry services. Teams must provide their own food, transportation, and bedding. We don�t charge for use of our facilities. If you would care to make a donation to offset our housing costs, $5 per person per day is suggested. We hope that you will consider a larger donation to cover the cost of building materials. More information on staying at Parkway.

How to Make a Reservation
Read the detailed information on this page and the Covenant for Success. Check with our Disaster Recovery Coordinator to make sure we can host your group on the dates you wish to come, and submit the Group Reservation Form. You can get this form by contacting our Disaster Recovery Coordinator by e-mail at parkwaypda@ppc.nocoxmail.com or by phone at (504) 733-1644. To help us plan appropriate work for your group, we also request a Team Skills Assessment, which is also available through our Disaster Recovery Coordinator. Please submit these forms at least three weeks before your arrival.

Staying at Parkway

Sleeping room
The room is 47' by 25', with a folding divider in the middle. It has air conditioning/heating. Contains air mattresses (30), couches, tables, refrigerator (for drinks), towels, t-shirts, some tools, and miscellaneous toiletries. The fellowship hall and other classrooms are usually available as overflow sleeping space or as a separate room for snorers. The overflow spaces must be cleared out during the day for use by our preschool. There is no permanent "boys" and "girls" space, as our groups vary in composition, but the room divider will easily allow separation if desired. Your group is responsible for keeping this room clean.

Dining room
Part of our fellowship hall is set aside as your eating area with tables and chairs. This is not connected to the sleeping room, so it's a good place for night owls to hang out.

Food
You will need to plan and provide your own meals. We usually provide one meal in the middle of the week as a hospitality and fellowship opportunity. Our kitchen is available for your use, and there is a pantry set aside for our volunteers that usually remains stocked with a variety of things. You will probably want to pack lunches to take to your work site, and we have several coolers that you may use. There are a number of grocery stores and a Sam's Club near the church.

Kitchen
Our church kitchen is large and well supplied. It connects to the fellowship hall. We keep a stock of paper plates and bowls that you may use. All the appliances, pots, and utensils you are likely to need are available. You may also use the freezer and the left side of the double refrigerator.

Towels and T-shirts
We have a supply of towels and stylish blue PDA t-shirts for you to use. You may take a t-shirt home with you.

Laundry
We will wash the provided towels and t-shirts daily. There is a small washer/dryer in the shower room and laundromats nearby if needed.

Showers
We share four showers with a Methodist church that also houses volunteers. They are located across the street and down a block. Men shower on the even hours and women on odd hours.

Bathrooms
There are small bathrooms in the church office and larger ones near the sanctuary. Your group is responsible for removing their personal items from the bathrooms and keeping the bathrooms tidy. All bathrooms are also used by the preschool. There is also a dressing room with a vanity mirror and hairdryers.

Internet
We have a wireless router with a limited range. It can be used near the office and in the fellowship hall.

TV/DVD
We have a TV with a DVD player that you may use. We also have a few movies in our library.

Parking
There is a church parking lot across the street. It is used during weekdays by an elementary school, but we use it on nights and weekends. There is also some street parking behind the church on Ruth Street. When parking on the street, keep in mind that Jefferson Parish parking regulations state that you may not park across the street from a driveway.

Visiting with Parkway's congregation
Check the church calendar for events. We are always delighted to have visitors for our Sunday worship and other gatherings. Our youth group typically meets on Sunday night and sometimes leads an outing to a sporting event. Some of our volunteers have enjoyed participating in our Tuesday night Bible study. There is often a midweek devotional service, and we like to share a dinner with our volunteers once in the week as well.

Donations
Make checks payable to Parkway Presbyterian Church (Memo: Katrina). Donations will be used for tools, building materials, and providing volunteer housing. Gift cards for Home Depot or Lowe's are also appreciated. $5 per head is suggested.

What to pack

• First aid kit
• Sleeping bag, pillow, sheets. Parkway provides air mattresses.
• Work clothes: jeans, shorts, pants. Parkway provides clean t-shirts for work every day. Be prepared to ruin your work clothes!
• Steel shank work boots or heavy duty work boots
• Non-work clothes and shoes for evenings and days off
• Shower shoes. Parkway provides clean towels every day.
• Tool belts
• Rain gear
• Hat/visor/bandana
• Sleeping attire
• Jacket and warm clothing for cooler nights and mornings. Think layers.
• Personal toiletries
• Medications
• Gel hand sanitizer
• Earplugs
• Sunscreen
• Water bottle
• Thermos/travel mug for taking coffee to work
• Alarm clock or cell phone alarm
• Cards, Books, CD's, etc.
• Camera

Work

Project Homecoming
In cooperation with PDA and Catholic Charities, the Presbytery of South Louisiana has started a program known as Project Homecoming. Case managers help clients find all the aid they are eligible for. High need cases are referred to our construction managers, who supervise rebuilding work on their homes. Our volunteers, housed at Parkway and around the greater New Orleans area, provide the labor. We are always in need of additional funding for building supplies. Please consider raising money to cover the supplies needed for your efforts as well as continuing work.

Preparation
Project Homecoming has moved on from its "gutting phase" to focus mainly on construction, so you will probably be assigned to some kind of construction project rather than a gutting job. We are greatly in need of licensed trade people, so please let us know if you can bring a plumber, electrician, or HVAC technician with your group. We need people who can do all kinds of construction work--from electrical and plumbing to walls and floors. You may want to take some classes at Home Depot, Lowe's, or a local trade school. Ask if they can set up a class just for your group. Another good way to prepare is to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity in your area. Being prepared with a good grasp of some construction skills will help each member of your team feel useful, and you will leave with a greater sense of accomplishment.

Projects
Specific work assignments are never final. We can usually give you a basic idea of the work ahead of time. Unfortunately, construction work doesn't always go as planned. Sometimes projects or priorities change at the last minute. Prepare to be flexible, and remember that all work is likely to have some down time between tasks. Here are some things you may be asked to do:

• Removing damaged parts of a home (gutting)
• Hanging sheetrock
• Finishing (taping and floating) sheetrock
• Caulking and painting
• Flooring installation
• Window and door installation
• Light carpentry: moldings, baseboard
• Siding repair/installation

Tools
Project Homecoming should provide each work site with most of the necessary tools -- especially the large power tools. However, it is always convenient to have extras on hand, so we do not discourage people from bringing/buying their own supplies. We recommend bringing gift cards for Home Depot or Lowe's rather than buying the tools ahead of time. Projects often progress at a different rate than expected, so it is difficult to say exactly what tools you will need in advance. We also provide work gloves, safety glasses/goggles, N95 masks, and Tyvek suits. (The suits should be needed only for certain gutting work.) If you have personal tools you would like to bring, please label them with your name.

Daily schedule
Your exact schedule may depend on several factors, including weather, but on most days work will begin at about 8:30 a.m. Heat exhaustion is a major concern in the height of summer. It can be prevented by drinking lots of water and taking lots of breaks in the shade. There will usually be no air conditioning at the work sites. You will probably return to Parkway by 5pm each day. Dinner time will often be staggered with shower time. Many groups find it easiest to have a few people start dinner while others take showers.

Weekly schedule
Most groups arrive on a Saturday or Sunday and stay for a week. This allows for a Monday-Friday work week. We encourage you to take at least an evening, or even a whole day, to have fun and enjoy our amazing, unique city.

Working with other people and organizations
We are happy to provide work for people regardless of whether they stay at our church. If you have a particular project unrelated to Parkway or the Presbytery of South Louisiana, please discuss the project with us before making your reservation.

Age and health restrictions
Our age restrictions for youth groups are as follows:
18 and older -- Are treated as adults, allowed to do any work.
16 and 17 years -- Can't use power tools. Must be accompanied by adults (a 4-to-1 youth-to-adult ratio at minimum).
14 and 15 years -- Can't use power tools or gut houses. Must be accompanied by a parent or legal cout-appointed guardian in a 1-to-1 ratio.
13 and younger -- Cannot be on work sites.

There is no maximum age for volunteers, but volunteers should be in good general health and up to date on vaccinations. Tetanus vaccinations are an absolute MUST. Hepatitis A and B are highly recommended. In some places, there are high concentrations of mold and other toxins. People with compromised immune systems, respiratory or heart conditions should not participate in gutting or debris removal work. All participants must submit a Health and Liability Form along with a copy of any health insurance cards before beginning work. We recommend as many team members as possible know first aid. If your group can't meet our age requirements, download this list of ideas for youth volunteer activities to look for other options.

About the Area

Location
Parkway is located in Metairie, Louisiana, in Jefferson Parish. (A parish is like a county.) Metairie is usually pronounced "MET-uh-ree." Some locals call it "MET-ree." It is immediately to the west and upriver from New Orleans, which is in Orleans Parish. Metairie is part of the New Orleans metro area and also sustained much flood and storm damage due to the 2005 hurricanes. For the most part, Parkway's immediate neighborhood is superficially recovered. There is still much work to be done on the homes in the area, but we are glad that our local businesses are mostly running, and even working on extending their hours. It's still not like it used to be, but we've come a long way.

Weather
The air is very humid all year. Summer is extremely hot. Fall and spring can be pretty warm as well. However, the weather sometimes changes very quickly, so be prepared for anything. Check out the Weather Center at the Times-Picayune, our local paper, or your favorite weather website, for a forecast before packing.

Crime
New Orleans has problems much like any big city. Generally, crime is not a real hazard. There are certain neighborhoods to avoid, and most of the crime is related to drug traffic. Your chance of being hurt as an innocent bystander is very low. To avoid being victimized, follow reasonable caution, staying with your group and near crowds. Ask for guidance before heading into an unfamiliar neighborhood. Don't visit unpopulated areas at night. Parkway is in a fairly safe neighborhood. The doors and gates should be kept locked for security, and no one should go out alone.
Download the April 2007 Visitor Safety Statement from the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau, in DOC or PDF format.

Entertainment
We have compiled a list of opportunities for fun, educational, and cultural experiences in the New Orleans area. Visit the html page or download as a PDF.

Hurricane Preparation

Questions?

For questions not answered on this page, contact our Disaster Recovery Volunteer.

Phone:	(504) 733-1644
Fax:	(504) 733-1647
Email:	parkwaypda@ppc.nocoxmail.com
Mail:	6200 Camphor St. Metairie, LA 70003

Parkway's Disaster Recovery Mission

• Disaster Recovery Mission Home Page
• Volunteer Stories
• New Orleans Entertainment and Enrichment Opportunities