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The War Cry | AUGUST 2015
to give witness to the grandeur
that existed there before August
2005. What caused the stark differ-
ence in reconstruction in Gulfport
and Biloxi with that of New Or-
leans? The answer is simple: flood
insurance.
Properties can now "be got for a
song," as longtime resident Bruce
Brookshire claims. "The problem is
that even if you built a house there,
the annual flood insurance premi-
ums can run as high as $50,000!
Who could afford that?"
Bruce lives in a 19th-century
house built entirely of crushed oys-
ter shells and cement. It sits like a
fortress on the corner of Howard
Avenue and Lee Street, roughly the
distance of three football fields
from the ocean's edge. Katrina had
little effect on what locals call the
Oyster House, but hundreds of
homes to the east and west of
Bruce's were destroyed, as well as
the Army's Biloxi Corps building on
Howard Avenue. "When the origi-
nal owner built this house around
1900 there was a severe shortage of
bricks. What they had a lot of
though were oyster shells. So he
came up with the idea of crushing
the shells, mixing it with cement,"
Bruce marvels.
John Lowe, another Biloxi resi-
dent, rode out the storm in his
house above Back Bay. John was
with the Biloxi Police Department
at the time. He is now retired from
the U.S. Air Force. His wife,
Wanda, was an employee at the Bi-
loxi Corps and works on the staff at
the Kroc Center there today. After
the hurricane, John and Wanda
ventured out to survey the damage
around town and found a war zone.
They helped hand out cleanup kits
and hygiene products at what used
to be the Biloxi Corps. "The Army
owned what used to be the Dukate
Elementary School, right next to
the Biloxi Corps. The City of Biloxi
wanted that property back for a
city community center, and offered
old Yankie Stadium in a land swap.
Turns out, the Army had its eye on
the stadium in hopes of building
the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Com-
munity Center," John says. "The
negotiations went on for some time,
but the papers were signed and the
land swap became legal just three
days before Katrina!"
The Lowes worked tirelessly for
The Salvation Army in the years
after Katrina. John says he is
"proud of what we as an Army were
able to do to help our people re-
cover." He recalls great leaders the
Army sent to the Mississippi Gulf
Coast in Katrina's wake: "Majors
David and Cherry Craddock were
in Gulfport, and Majors Donald
and Helene Wildish were at the Bi-
loxi Corps that year. During the re-
covery, headquarters sent Majors
Bruce Brookshire`s home, known
locally as the Oyster House, has weath-
ered every hurricane since it was built
circa 1900.
KOBE, JAPAN � Hundreds of homeless victims of the
earthquake received blankets, food, medical care
and supplies from Army officers and volunteers.
The Army also dispatched six doctors from the San
Diego area to help people taking refuge on the streets.
PENSACOLA, FL � 35 canteens fed and supplied
rescue workers and 100,000+ victims of Hurricane
Opal. More than 220 people were sheltered at
the Pensacola Corps during the storm.
1996
LONG ISLAND, NY � The Greater
New York Division mobilized medi-
cal personnel after the explosion of
TWA Flight 800 claimed the lives of
229 people. More than 800 rescue
workers and families received bev-
erages, food and counseling by Salvation Army officers.
NORTH CAROLINA � Before Hurricane Bertha hit
land, the Army staffed shelters and emergency feeding
programs at six locations in North and South Carolina.
WILMINGTON, NC � 24 response teams supported
more than 38,166 individuals; and 440 people found
shelter at Army outposts after Hurricane Fran.
LOS ANGELES, CA � Two Army Camps in Malibu
Canyon served as a base of operation to more
than 2,500 firefighters and relief workers
during a week of blazing wildfires in October.
1997
MIDWEST � Salvation Army
teams provided food, water,
shelter, cleaning, supplies, coun-
seling services and other aid to
thousands of flood victims in
Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Mis-
sissippi, Ohio and W. Virginia.
GRAND FORKS, ND � As
the Red River rose, relief supplies and more than 2,000
Army personnel and volunteers from 14 states rushed
into the flood-stricken regions of Minnesota and North
and South Dakota to assist the recovery effort.
1998
JONESBORO, AR � After five
were shot dead at Westside Middle
School, Army canteens arrived to
serve donated food to the children,
parents, counselors, National
Guard and other emergency per-
sonnel.
THE CARIBBEAN � The Army provided shel-
ter, food and clothing to victims of Hurricane George
and brought mobile kitchens into rural areas of Puerto
Rico, which suffered the worst storm damage with
80 percent of the island without power or water.
DEL RIO, TX � After severe flooding from Tropical
Storm Charlie, helicopters brought pallets of drinking
water and supplies daily for Army disaster teams to
assist rescue workers and residents.
NEW YORK �
As news broke of the crash of Swissair Flight 111 in Nova
Scotia, officers from the Greater New York Division were
assigned to a family counseling center at JFK International
Airport, Flight 111's origin.
HONDURAS � A U.S. task
force created plans for long-term relief in areas of
North and South Honduras after Hurricane Mitch.
1999
LITTLE ROCK, AR � Disaster
teams of 125 Salvation Army offi-
cers and volunteers participated
in the relief effort, providing meals,
water, plastic sheeting, cleaning
supplies, blankets, counseling
and prayer support in the wake of tornadoes.
BOURBONNAIS, IL � Teams offered prayer support
at a temporary morgue at a local school to families of
victims of the Amtrack train derailment.
OKLAHOMA
& KANSAS � The Army served food and beverages to
emergency personnel and survivors at the Emergency
Operations Center after storms destroyed communities.
KATRINA +
SPECIAL
REPORT:
Snapshot:
25 Years of EDS
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