Sojo had this to say about the Gulf Coast Disaster (reprint from sojo mail) Visit www.sojo.net:

by Jim Wallis

During hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters, those who have the least to lose are often those who lose the most. Why?

First, the dwellings in which poor people live are not as sturdy, stable, or safe as others. "Shotgun" shacks, mobile homes, and poorly constructed apartment buildings don’t do well in hurricane-force winds and tidal surges.

Second, the places where poor people live are also the most vulnerable. The rich often live at the tops of hills, the poor in the valleys and plains that are the first to flood. The living conditions in these neighborhoods are also usually the most dense and overcrowded.

Third, it is much harder for the poor to evacuate. They don’t own cars, can’t afford to rent them, and often can’t even afford a tank of gas - especially at today’s prices. They can’t afford an airplane, train, or even bus ticket. And, as one low-income person told a New Orleans reporter, they have no place to go. People in poverty can’t afford motel or hotel rooms, and often don’t have friends or family in other places with space to spare. In New Orleans, there were many people who desperately wanted to leave but couldn’t.

Fourth, low-income people are the least likely to have insurance on their homes and belongings, and the least likely to have health insurance. If jobs are lost because of natural disasters, theirs are the first to go. Poverty makes long-term recovery after a disaster more difficult - the communities that are the weakest to begin with usually recover the slowest. The lack of a living family income for most people in those communities leaves no reserve for emergencies.

New Orleans has a poverty rate of 28% - more than twice the national rate. Life is always hard for poor people - living on the edge is insecure and full of risk. Natural disasters make it worse. Yet even in normal times, poverty is hidden and not reported by the media. In times of disaster, there continues to be little coverage of the excessive impact on the poor. Devastated luxury homes and hotels, drifting yachts and battered casinos make far more compelling photographs.

The final irony of New Orleans is that the people who normally fill the Louisiana Superdome are those who can afford the high cost of tickets, parking, and concessions. Now its inhabitants are the poor, especially children, the elderly and the sick - those with nowhere else to go. Those with money are nowhere to be seen.

As the Gulf Coast now faces the long and difficult task of recovery, what can we do?

Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco declared Wednesday a day of prayer: "As we face the devastation wrought by Katrina, as we search for those in need, as we comfort those in pain and as we begin the long task of rebuilding, we turn to God for strength, hope and comfort." She urged residents in her state to ask "that God give us all the physical and spiritual strength to work through this crisis and rebuild."

Regent School of Business Grad..did you know? I know, I know, Pat made a fool of himself last week but don’t knock this real cutting-edge up to the latest technology school. Check this out…

REUTERS An aerial view of the devastation caused by Katrina in New Orleans.

Many people in the faith community are wondering how to help the people of the Gulf Coast deal with "America’s Tsunami" situation. We are taking up a collection in my church this Sunday. My home church pastor along with Northeast Medical Teams and World Vision are collecting money to send to the relief efforts. In a recent email he said:

"I want to strongly urge you to receive a special offering this Sunday with the relief efforts in the Gulf area.  Please make the checks payable to the Northeast Clergy Group, or Northwest Medical Teams International, or World Vision.  Then send the checks to the office address listed below and I will make sure that the funds are used to aid victims.  No money collected will be used for administrative costs.  Do not send your money to the secular national relief organizations, they have overhead expenses.  9/11 taught us how to disburse funds more effectively through our national network of churches and ministries."

The address to send your donation to is: Primitive Christian Church, 207-209 East Broadway, New York, NY 10002.

The impact of faith is being felt across the country through faith-based initiatives that are rising from our religious communities. In the recent year, the difference faith makes in human service programs has been written about in various mainstream vehicles. Here is another report that documents the difference.

crying, thinking of the people in the Gulf Coast who are presently "going thru" the devastation and loss of Hurricane Katrina. Today as I sit in sweat in my school office (I just came in today to find the AC is not working) my thoughts are not on anything but the people of the Gulf.  It could have easily been us down here in South Florida. What do you do when everything is lost? I prayed for them even in my prayer this morning as I took my son to school. I cried again. I still feel like crying, its like I feel a deep immense pain. One of the newscasters of Good Morning America cried when she told the world she found her mom and family ok but her hometown was no more. Another man shared he lost his wife and only had one of his children and when the newscaster asked what he will do, he said "I just feel lost" and cried. On the Tom Joyner Morning Show this am Travis Smiley said we should consider this "our Tsunami" and do all we can to help. If but for a moment, let’s take the time to say a prayer for all these folks today.

There was a Pastor in New York City who once preached a message to our Youth Fellows group called God uses Second Fiddles. This Pastor is now Bishop Ron Bailey of Love Gospel Assembly in the Bronx. As long as I have known him he was always humble and gracious and he especially honored his role in a secondary role as an Elder. Well, now finally, a book about the necessary leadership role of "Second Chair Leaders". Jossey Bass Publishers who usually put out some great leadership books, have this one as well, check it out here. I think it is useful for all of us to understand this role because sometimes we forget that great followers make great leaders and that some followers may not ever be called to first leadership positions.

I was telling my sister-in-law today that even in leadership programs we have to make sure that we stress leadership from all roles not just the "top" buck stops here position.

I am working on dissertation on developing an organizational leadership program that builds leaders of character and who understand that the process of leadership is continual and ever-growing. CEFL wants to do the same. Women are leaders in church AND society but being leaders isn’t easy. Developing into strong leaders is about the middle of the process. When God has called you into your position of leadership, we somehow realize and acknowledge that he will equip those he called but in the middle of the process we go through tough times and we need to know what leaders to be in the middle. In the dark times. In the times no one sees. This is what has happened to many leaders in church and society. Tyco, Enron, various church ministries failed because the leaders never took the time to develop their soul. God is who he says he says. Sometimes we are not. Leadership is more about your essence. Your soul. Leadership is not solely about a skill set. Many people think that school or institute will surely make us the leaders God destined us to be. No, my friends. Time spent with God, filling your spirit with the words of God, self-evaluation of who you are becoming will make you the leader God wants you to be. Bottomline, leadership is more about you and the person you are becomng then the skills you are learning.

It’s hurricane season and Katrina came to visit us yesterday. The Hurricane Center expected most of the damage to be in my county of Broward but uh, we were spared again. We’ve been in Florida since 2003 and been through now five hurricanes that hit our state but thankfully we have not suffered much damage. Four people lost their lives in the storm not far from us. My brother-in-law and sister-in-lawe Pastors Marc and Enid Rivera with their son Matthew were with us for this recent storm. Enid kept saying “I love NYC! We don’t have this over there”. The discussion was on what would make people want to live down here in Florida. Bottomline, its when you are ready to leave where you are it. Something happens inside of you where you just can’t take where you live anymore. We didn’t want to stay in NY to prove a point. Beside the fact that we HAD to leave because my youngest son can’t take the cold, we were just ready. Everything about NYC was difficult. Yes it is a great city, lots of things to do, stores and restaurants open late but you have to enjoy living in couped up quarters, paying $110 parking tickets, or $30 parking fees for a 15 minute visit to someone in midtown. You also have to love the seasons and snow. I don’t knock anyone who loves NY because I love NY too…I just don’t love it enough to live there, especially not with a family. Some folks are called to a geographic location forever and some of us are there for a season. My season ended. I’ll never say I never return because never is a word you should not use when you are a Child of God, as God has His own plan and we usually don’t know about it until afterwards. So, today I am grateful to God that we were spared again and I hope and pray that as we continue in hurricane season (ends Nov 30), we won’t see much damage and can bid farewell to the season. But even though in FL we only have one season –hurricane season–I stilll wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. NY NY is a hell of a town but South Florida ain’t so bad either, esp. if you have a daring bone in your body.

We need more Latinos to pursue higher education and we need more folks with money who care about this community chipping in some dollars to help them out. Why so crucial? Getting more Hispanics to finish college would halve the number of low-income Hispanic families and add an estimated $130 billion annually to the economy, a new report says. Read more here.