Corporation for National and Community Service CONTACT: Sandy Scott Phone: 202-606-6724 Email: sscott@cns.gov
CNN's Anderson Cooper Thanks AmeriCorps and Volunteers for Katrina Response (Video)
Highlighting the progress that’s been made in bringing back residents, jobs, tourists and hope, CNN’s Anderson Cooper thanked AmeriCorps, NCCC, Habitat for Humanity and other organizations for their key role in helping out in Gulf Coast recovery efforts in a live broadcast of AC 360 from the Camp Hope volunteer shelter here last night.
“We’ve seen remarkable work done by groups like AmeriCorps and Habitat for Humanity, which is in charge of this place Camp Hope that is home to hundreds of volunteers who have given their time and their labor to help their fellow Americans. Without the work done by thousands of people like them and church groups and aid groups not as much progress would have been made,” Cooper said. “Thank you very much for being here.”
Cooper interviewed AmeriCorps NCCC Team Leader Malai Turnbull and member Sarah Rudnik about their service, the progress they’ve seen in New Orleans, and how Katrina has been a call to action to hundreds of thousands of young people who have come to the Gulf to volunteer. More than 3,100 NCCC members have served 1.7 million hours in the Gulf Coast on over 650 relief and recovery projects. NCCC is part of a larger national service recovery effort in the Gulf consisting of more than 10,210 AmeriCorps members, 17,400 Senior Corps volunteers, and tens of thousands of Learn and Serve America students. In addition to their direct service, national service participants have managed and supported more than 266,000 volunteers, a quarter of the total force of 1.1 million volunteers that have served in Katrina’s aftermath.
This is the second time Cooper has broadcast live from Camp Hope, a volunteer base camp managed by New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity that has housed tens of thousands of volunteers who have gutted, restored, and built thousands of homes in St. Bernard Parish and New Orleans. His last show took place on August 29, the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Cooper has returned to the Gulf Coast more than 20 times to report on the progress and challenges in the recovery effort.
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. The Corporation administers Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America. For more information, visit http://www.nationalservice.gov.
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