When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, Hands On Network made an immediate and serious commitment to address the devastation and support Gulf relief and recovery efforts through targeted volunteer action. With a $500k Challenge Grant from the Corporation for National Community Service, we launched Hands On New Orleans and Hands On Gulf Coast (in Biloxi, MS) to serve the vast needs of communities directly impacted by the storms. Our focus, then and now, was bringing our project management expertise to bare, in order to more effectively deploy volunteers eager to help. We are grateful to have received over $4 million in federal and corporate investments since the start of our Gulf operations. Current funders include the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund, The Home Depot, the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, and many other generous partners. Our Gulf recovery work will continue to receive national, federal and private fundraising support from the Hands On Network fundraising team.

Since Katrina and Rita, Hands On New Orleans has mobilized over 5,000 volunteers to provide over 400,000 hours of service, deploying about 100 volunteers a day, on average. Hands On volunteers execute home reconstruction and community revitalization projects, including: supporting the reopening and ongoing needs of schools, facilitating mural art projects throughout the city, building capacity in other non-profits, and addressing the special needs of marginalized communities. These efforts have generated an estimated $5 million in economic benefits for New Orleans

Hands On New Orleans has earned both local credibility and national media recognition, and is now starting the process of transitioning to a locally owned and managed independent Hands On Action Center. Hands On New Orleans will help.