University Relief Efforts
Case starts support group for students affected by Hurricane Katrina
The University Counseling Service/Collegiate Behavioral Health (UCS/CBH) is offering a support group for students who have been affected by Hurricane Katrina.
The group will meet from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Thursdays, during the Provost Hour, from September 22 through November 10 in the International Student Lounge, second floor of the Sears Library Building.
Students who are displaced from their home or university and who are attending Case, the Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland Institute of Music or the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine; students attending Case or its affiliates who have homes or families or friends in the affected areas; and any students who are experiencing the impact of the disaster and are looking for support are welcome to attend.
University to donate furniture for college housing
A truck filled with over 400 pieces of furniture from Case Western Reserve University earmarked for colleges in the Gulf Coast area will soon make its way to the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.
As colleges and universities in the areas look to rebuild and furnish residence halls and offices, a call went out from the American College and University Housing Officers-International (ACUHO-I) to aid in the efforts. Case is responding by sending surplus items from the university—beds, desks, dressers, mattresses and couches. The items are now being sorted and prepared for delivery.
Details about when the furniture will be loaded and delivered and which colleges impacted by Hurricane Katrina will receive the items are still being finalized.
Case for Community Day to include collections for hurricane relief agencies
On Case for Community Day, Wednesday, September 14, "Case, Build Hope" will be collecting donations at various locations on and around campus. Donors will receive beaded necklaces. Make it a Mardis Gras day for disaster relief, and build hope for the thousands of people who need help.
"Case, Build Hope" Katrina Relief Boxes also will be located in participating departments in the Case College of Arts and Sciences.
Organized by a group of concerned faculty and students, "Case, Build Hope," needs volunteers for Wednesday, September 14. Interested staff, faculty and students can contact T.S. Harvey at tsh8@case.edu to register as a volunteer and receive logistical information.
Case for Community Day is a community service half-day, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. September 14, which will include all staff, faculty, students and alumni who choose to participate in various volunteer projects throughout the Cleveland area.
For more information on Case for Community Day, go to http://www.case.edu/events/cfc/.
Case cancer center, NCRM ready to help patients, researchers affected by hurricane
Stanton Gerson, M.D., director of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the directors of other cancer centers in the United States, have notified the National Cancer Institute that they can assist cancer patients from the hurricane affected areas.
In particular, cancer patients on clinical trials will have access to the Case center with support from NCI and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMA has agreed to cover the costs of medical care for cancer patients at NCI centers. The Case center is designated as a comprehensive center by the NCI. In addition, the NCI has established a hot line phone to coordinate information for both patients and centers.
Gerson also participates in a weekly review of status and progress after Katrina with the NCI director and notified American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) of Case's willingness to see patients needing assistance.
As the director of the National Center for Regenerative Medicine, Gerson also responded to the American Society of Gene Therapy to house investigators if the need arises.
Partial proceeds from plant, poster sale to benefit hurricane relief efforts
Partial proceeds from the Thwing Center Plant and Poster Sale in early September will benefit Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
The poster sale featured art, music, film and photography images. The plant sale included hanging basket plants, floor plants, African Violets, Hardy Mums and other assorted plants.
For more information, contact Maura O’Beirne-Stanko at 216-368-2654.
Mandel Council sponsored potluck dinner fundraiser for Case community
The Case Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences hosted a salad and potluck dinner fundraiser for victims of the hurricane from 6:30–8:30 p.m. September 8 in the courtyard at the school.
Members of the university community—students, faculty, staff, alumni, family and friends—were encouraged to bring their favorite sharable dish and a minimum $5 donation. All proceeds have been donated to the American Red Cross.
The dinner is sponsored by the Mandel Council.
Campus international health group raises nearly $500 for Red Cross
In response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina last week, the International Health Interest Group at the School of Medicine held a potluck fundraiser on Sept. 6 and generated $453 for the Red Cross.
All food was prepared by Case medical students and about 90 community members from both University medical program and Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine program attended.
Case students host sleepover in Adelbert Gymnasium
Case students hosted a sleepover party that began at 10 p.m. Saturday, September 10, in Adelbert Gymnasiuum to benefit Hurricane Katrina survivors.
Members of the Case community brought a $5 minimum donation for Oxfam America along with their sleeping bag and a pillow and enjoyed movies, ping-pong, dodge ball, foursquare, basketball and a dance party until 10 a.m. Sunday, September 11.
For more information about Oxfam America, go to http://www.oxfamamerica.org.
Case staff member offers house to families from New Orleans area
Linda Watkins, manager of the payroll audit department at the Case School of Medicine, plans to offer families displaced by Hurricane Katrina a place to stay in a vacant two-family home she owns. The Rev. Larry Macon, pastor of Mt. Zion of Oakwood Village, where Watkins is a member, asked if anyone could house hurricane victims. Watkins and other church members signed up to donate space in their vacant homes and rental properties.
Watkins said offering the two-family house, which has been vacant for years, was the right thing to do. “You’ve got to do something. I can’t go down there, but I can help them with something here. That’s why God had that house empty.”
Several members of Watkins’s church traveled to Washington today to find out what the government guidelines are for offering the homes. They now need furniture and supplies to make the homes complete and ready for families.
Students collect $500 for Red Cross during provost’s hour
Case's Education Enhancement Programs raised $500 during the university's Community Hour Kick-Off Barbecue on September 2. The funds will be donated to the American Red Cross for hurricane relief efforts.
During the University Community Hour—every Friday during the fall and spring semesters from 12:30 to 2 p.m.—no required academic events are scheduled in order to foster community-building among students and faculty at campus-wide gatherings and special events.
Donations collected during blood pressure screenings
Case's new student-led on-campus EMS program provided free blood pressure screenings on the Case Quad on September 7—and collected donations from faculty, staff and students for the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
Student service offices to collect donations during home football games
Case’s Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA), the Athletics Department and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity are organizing a fundraising drive called Case Cares during all of the home football games this season at Case’s new athletic stadium.
Plans include donating funds and non-perishable food items collected to an American Red Cross division that is directly serving the 500 hurricane evacuees taking refuge at Southern University in Baton Rouge, La.
In addition to one university assisting another, there is a personal connection: Dr. Deborale Richardson-Bouie, director of OMA, is the daughter of Southern’s head football coach, Pete Richardson. She said he has shared stories of heartbreak, including several football players on his team directly impacted by the hurricane.
“He has students who can’t locate their family members,” Richardson-Bouie said. “This [Case Cares] is yet another way to show we care about the community.”
Medical school professor serves on Cleveland advisory panel
Karen Olness, professor of pediatrics and an expert of medical management during disasters, was part of an advisory meeting at Cleveland City Hall this morning as the city prepares to accept people from Louisiana displaced by the hurricane.
She will also be on WVIZ-TV25 this Thursday night on the program "Ideas" speaking about the special medical and psychological needs of children in disasters. Olness and her team have trained health professionals around the world on responding to disasters.