Out here in North Metro Atlanta, Katrina victims face enormous challenges every day while attempting to piece their lives back together. I work and communicate with evacuees on a daily basis, and from what I have observed here in Cumming is just the tip of the iceberg.

Katrina victims have come to Cumming, Flowery Branch, Sugar Hill and other parts north because they have family or friends here. When they arrived, they registered with Red Cross and received a small stipend of money. Red Cross referred them out to other service organizations, such as Salvation Army, United Way, etc. When evacuees attempt to obtain assistance, there isn't anything available. There is no financial assistance available from any of the other non-profits. This is what the people need - MONEY. How can politicians and celebrities ask for cash donations and then when evacuees attempt to access money, they can't? The money is there. It's just not trickling down.

Many, many evacuees have applied for FEMA assistance, and for whatever reason at this late date, they still have not received a penny. Evacuees try to call FEMA but can't get through. All the evacuees lost valuable work time and are entitled to an Interstate Unemployment benefit.

They go to the Georgia Department of Labor and given a nice debit card. Evacuees are instructed to activate the debit card through Louisianna, or whatever state they are from, and when they attempt to activate it, it can't be done. They receive all the phone numbers to the Louisianna Department of Labor, but cannot get through -- all the while wasting valuable time, money, gas to attempt to get assistance.

Every evacuee I know is working and is willing to work. This is not an issue. These people have worked and owned homes all their lives. Thankfully in Georgia, jobs are available. But because there is no public tranportation and many do not have vehicles, they are forced into lower paying jobs because they must walk to work or ride a bike to work.

At this point, six weeks after Katrina, these people are in a worse circumstance than before. One particular family had all their clothes and food stolen out of the house, experiencing yet another tragedy all over again.

The problems I have listed here are just a slice of what is happening all over Georgia. The majority of these people are good, upstanding citizens and are suffering still because of gaps in the system and the press focusing on the "bad people." The Red Cross, Salvation Army and United Way organizations are doing the best they are set up to do at the moment. But in my opinion, the public must be involved to make sure they do the job better. There is much room for improvement.

Everywhere you go, money and goods are being collected, but the money and goods are not being delivered to the people who need it most. Red Cross serviced 1,100+ families at the Northeast Georgia Chapter. Local churches were unaware of the numbers of people seen at the Red Cross, so they sent the collections elsewhere. I am not saying that this is a bad thing; I am saying that now we have serious gaps of goods and services out here where they are needed.

Just think of it. If a disaster happened here, where would we all go? If we evacuated to another state and used up all our savings on living expenses, what would people do? FEMA may not come through, you get a little bit of money from Red Cross, and beyond that you are on you're own. Granted, it is up to the individual to make it and work hard -- which they are doing -- but without the initial leg up, these people can spiral into permanent poverty right in our own backyard.

In Gwinnett County, evacuees are told by the local government that they are only allowed to have one family per household. Its interesting that this ordinance was implemented right after Katrina hit. Multiple families are living together because they have to. Where does the county government expect people to go. Maybe they would rather evacuees start panhandling in the wealthy areas of Sugar Hill and Suwanee?

With all these serious problems, there is growing frustration among evacuees, and rightly so. Remember -- these are people who worked and owned homes. They are chefs, hotel workers, veterans, hairdressers. The problems I listed here are just a few. There are many other problems that I couldn't begin to commment on publicly.

The public must become involved to help fill in the gaps of services for these people. If you really want to help, it is best to do so directly with the victims. There are evacuees still living in local hotels without permanent housing. Their hotel stay is about to run out now, so they will need more permanent housing. The Forsyth County Houses of Hope is doing a great job. Register with them to offer housing, and they will do the entire screening process. Or register with www.Katrinahousing.org.

Check with your local grocery stores. They will tell you if they have had evacuee customers. Some grocery stores are even sponsoring families, especially Publix. Ask the Publix manager if his/her store has a family they are working with, and they will hook you up with them. Ask a local church if they a sponsoring a family, and if so, get involved. Call local hotels/motels and check to see if they have evacuees registered. They won't give you their names, but they will get a message to them if you have a good/service or money to offer.

Many people have concerns that giving handouts can cause dependence or that the donor can be taken advantage of. The former should not be a concern at the present time. This is a point of desperation and survival. The latter can occur sometimes, but by and large, as I have said, these evacuees are good honest people. If you are truly concerned about being taken advantage of, then don't bother to get involved.

I hope more people will get involved to give these people a fighting chance of making it. Most everyone from New Orleans has nothing to return to and will be our neighbors for years to come. Please help them make the transition to being new Georgia citizens.

Terry Baradine