Calvin Students Partner with CRWRC on Hurricane Assistance

September 2, 2005 == MEDIA ADVISORY

Calvin College students taking part in StreetFest, the college's massive
freshmen volunteer project that is part of orientation, will work the phone
banks this afternoon for the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee
(CRWRC).

The 20-25 students will be at the CRWRC headquarters at 2850 Kalamazoo in
Grand Rapids from 1 pm to 3:30 pm today.

Calvin expects that more students will man the phone banks this weekend. The
college is using campus-wide communication vehicles including email lists,
freshmen orientation groups and more, to spread the word about the opportunity
to contribute to the nationwide hurricane assistance effort now underway.

Calvin also is forming plans to work with other area relief agencies and is
planning longer-term hurricane relief efforts, including such things as sites
for its 2006 spring break service trips. The school also is finalizing plans
to help students from Gulf Coast colleges and universities who have been
displaced by the hurricane.

For now it is adding immediate assistance to the CRWRC efforts. The CRWRC
says that with Hurricane Katrina it is "responding to a level of disaster we
have not seen in our history."

CRWRC director Andy Ryskamp adds: "Normal system processes that worked in
other situations don't work for this one. It is both a challenge and an
opportunity."

The CRWRC plans to raise $5 million for hurricane relief.

Money donated to CRWRC will help deploy rapid response teams to get needs
quickly assessed, clean up debris, purchase building materials and repair
homes, and provide funding for long-term reconstruction in those areas hardest
hit.

Contact Ryskamp at 224-0741 or ryskampa@crcna.org
Also see www.crwrc.org

-end-
Received on Fri Sep 2 12:34:55 2005