Now you are not renting...you will be a homeowner....Hey, and get that swing set for Kameron!...bless ya'll "GITTER DONE"

when we help teachers...we help ourselves...i had a hi-school teacher who taught my mother...and my son had teachers who taught me....they are the backbone of all our comunities....and i still remember my 1st grade teacher...Mrs. Honeycutt

Congratulation to you hope you and your family enjoy what god has blessed you with god bless

I have recently returned from Mississippi as part of a church volunteer team. I was angered by people at home that thought Katrina victims were sitting around waiting for other's to pick up the pieces. That was not my experience at all. This Habitat Initiative disproves this as well. The folks I met in Mississippi are proud, hardworking people who pitched right in alongside the volunteers. I hope that if a disaster befalls me, I can behave with half the dignity I witnessed.

What a great family heritage. I'm proud that our country chose you to become a new homeowner. Teachers and good parents are our future. The tragedies of Katrina were unthinkable, but maybe a lesson that there are situations that we don't have any control and that we can only react. Man has to come to terms with the notion that there are forces greater than we can ever imagine.

Many blessings in your new home. You and your family deserve a new start. Kameron will have many memories of his first new home. Yes, get that swingset for him.

This is so encouraging. Our Habitat for Humanity chapter here in San Luis Obispo, California, is building, then packing up and shipping a house to Mobile, Alabama,on June 2-4 to help others like Mrs. Martin. It is truly gratifying to hear from someone like Mrs. Martin on the receiving end. Like Nehemiah said,"Let us arise and build." May God richly bless your new home!

God bless this family as they begin their new lives in their new home. Like Andy said, "get that swing set for Kameron" and get started making memories there in that beautiful place!

If you will tell me when you are in the home, I will buy that swing set for your son!

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY...WHY CAN'T THE GOVERNMENT TAKE SOME LESSONS FROM THEM. AN EXCELLENT PROGRAM THAT SHOULD BE INCREASED IN SIZE. MORE PEOPLE SHOULD DONATE TO THIS PROGRAM. THE BUILDING OF MODEST HOUSING TO MAKE SOMEONE'S DREAM COME TRUE. A SMALL PRICE TO PAY.

We are all glad to hear your not giving up. It makes us all proud. So many have given up or expect it to be done for them or given to them. Keep teaching we always need great teachers.

It seems like they could help 10 to 100's as many people by giving them down payment assitance instead? Sure some families are blessed but I wonder if the biggest beneficiaries are the people who donate their time to help build the houses. They feel good but the giving is so concentrated (one family receives tremendous benefit) when there are 100's of other needy families.

Its too bad they can't do both. Build some homes and help other get into their own by buying down mortgages.

More people would post if you didn't disclose our (p.s. email addresses to the world.)

I'm really glad that you can still see the positive side of life after everything that has happened to you and your family. May God bless your new home and keep your family safe.

congratulation and have fun enjoying your new house .
After every thing that you and your family have endure during the last year ,you deserve some good time ,and good luck, enjoy.....

With all of the devastation suffered in the area, what a blessing for these families to now own homes. This is a second chance for some where it seemed there was no hope. I hope that sweet little boy gets his swing set and that his parents' pain from the loss of loved ones dissipates with the squealing laughter of Kameron playing in his own backyard.

God bless you and keep you safe, I will continue to pray for you and all those affected by Katrina and Rita. However, we all need to pray for our coastal neighbors with the upcoming 2006 hurricane season. God, protect us all.

Bad news for those who will compete in the job market against these few who will get deeply subsidized housing, and so need less wages. Martin didn't expect so much devastation from a hurricane, despite being a teacher in a coastal hurricane zone. Now she's buying a house there. Subsidizing helps people to make these bad choices, and ultimately hurts everyone. It's no different than bailing out people who don't buy insurance.

In the morning of September 19, 1947, a cat 3 hurricane came ashore in Bay St. Louis, we lived just north of Dunbar Avenue. We lost everything and I was in the water for 7 or more hours in an inner-tube and clutching my dog. The only thing left of the house was th slab, the gas logs and a toilet.

My heart goes out to the survivors of Katrina. But they have survived the storm but the worst is yet to come; now the musst survive the government's red tape.

I have recently returned from a church mission trip to Pass Christian and for those who did not realize it before reading this..yes, it is wonderful agencies like Habitat and the Church that is rebuilding (alongside the residents) these devestated areas. Our church is already planning a second trip to the area and we know it will be far from our last. I urge everyone to pitch in and change not only their lives but yours as well! Do not waste your precious time being angry at the government for what they are not doing, pitch in, get your hands dirty and help!

Hearing Kameron in the background, it's good to know that he has not idea or concept of the devestation and pain that Katrina caused. He and many others like him are an encouragement for new beginnings. Well wishes to your family and everyone who went through this terrible ordeal.

God bless you and your family. Good luck with your new home. :)

My daughter spent one spring break while in college working for Habitat for Humanity and said it was an experience she would never forget. If each college student would give just one spring break to this fantastic endeavor, how many more homes could be built. I am proud to say that that is how she spent her spring break instead of showing up on raunchy vidoes. She is teaching now in a very poor area and I think the people she met on that spring break helped shape her current career choice.

It is always a blessing to see how God brings about a plan. None of us know how things would turn out, but I am a firm believer that He is in controlled. God bless you on your new house. Please let me know of other things you may need for your house.

Ms. Martin and Cameron, you have my best wishes at heart. Enjoy your new home, and may god keep you and your entire family.

Sam, from Portland....The people of BSL and Waveland are the most awesome people I have ever met. They are working their tails off cleaning up and trying to get some normalcy back in their lives. I never heard ONE complaint the several times I was there to help out. Sam, take a trip out there and see the hundreds of miles of total nothingness. There is no way most people could have survived without help from all over this great country. Thousands of volunteers have passed through the Gulf Coast region. The devastation is so overwhelming that no picture or story does it justice. You must see for yourself. Eight months later it is still shocking to ride through the streets and see nothing but concrete slabs. Sam, help is needed in this region, it doesn't mean that people are not helping themselves, they are, but it is overwhelming. If it takes Habitat to get these beautiful towns started again, then so be it.

A HOUSE IS JUST A HOUSE...LOVE MAKES IT A HOME...KEEP YOUR HOME FULL OF LOVE AND THEN, THINGS HAVE A WAY OF WORKING OUT.

It is truly a blessing for you and your family to receive a new home. I pray that all is well with you, continue to look to the hills, for we know our help comes from the Lord. Take care of that little man, I'm sure he'll be very happy as well as yourself.

To Sam in Portland, OR. There have been 'people' living in Bay St. Louis for over 500 years... 300 of those year by Europeans. These people live through hurricanes like Californians live through earthquakes and the midwest lives through tornados...and the north survives snow storms and don't forget New England's rivers. Hurricanes are just flashier...the waiting, reporters standing on the beach getting pelted. Most hurricanes are really not this all encompasing, but are usually more localized...and many precautions are taken regardless of what you see reported in the media.
The water pushed up by Katrina (on top of an already high tide...bad timing) is like a tsunami wave (y'all have the possibility of those?) hitting a 100+ mile length of coastal Oregon and pushing in several miles in places! Is this something you could foresee happening? Probably not...By the way...is there a river near you? Has it ever flooded?

To Sam from Portland - the wages here were depressed before the hurricane, and are just now becoming inline with the rest of the country. I know many people who won't go back to work at the casinos because they have MUCH better jobs.

To Cassie from Washington - There are no houses, honey, so why give them the money? They need to build houses, and the best way to have someone appreciate what they have is to; A) go thru a hurricane, and B)put some sweat equity into a home. And yes, sometimes the biggest beneficiaries are the people who build the houses. They have come to the Gulf Coast and many walk away in total amazement at the wonderful people here, the beautiful Gulf Coast, and the fragrant air this time of year.

I used to live in Pass Christian, but right now I'm in Georgia. My dream is to go back home. We are fortunate that our insurance company paid us for our home. Too many others have insurance companies who arn't paying, or only pay pennies on the value of the home. Still others got flooded out, and have no insurance because they technically didn't reside in flood zones.

Keep up the good work Habitat! You are making a difference in Mississippi!

After seeing all the damage from Katrina, I don't think there are enough carpenters in the country to get the job done. In these two towns, EVERYTHING has to be built. It's just gone. The volunteers and church groups who have come, as well as paid workers, are so very needed. Thank you all so much.

What a wonderful blessing...Congratulations to you and your family.......May God continue to bless you and take care of that beautiful little boy.

Habitat for Humanity seems to have the key to helping. Oprah also is building homes in Houston for hurricane survivors. Why can't the government take the bull by the horns and build 100s of homes for these deserving people?

Good luck to you and Kameron. I'm so happy for both of you in a blessing moment in your lives. God is always watching over us, taking care of us at all times. He is great. May you have many many years living in your new home and plenty of good memories there.

Could someone tell me how I can get on a volunteer team to work? I am a school teacher and would like to give some time this summer. I am a hard worker and have worked in Ozark Mission Project. I am having a hard time finding a team to join.

it's been a few days, i hope ground is being broke...Kimberly...take care and Godspeed

Brenda: Go to www.baystlouis.us and hit the volunteer tab at the bottom of the screen. You'll find many of the groups working in town. Don't know when it was last updated. Maybe those reading may know of others that have come into the area.

To Brenda Matthews, Hot Springs Arkansas; There is a volunteer organization in Long Beach Mississippi that is run by the Episcopal/Lutheran diocese in Mississippi called Camp Coast Care. My husband and I were there in January for a week. It is the most wonderful and sad thing you will ever do. Their mission right now is to help folks gut and rebuild their homes. You can go to the website and check it out. It is www.campcoastcare.com. You do not have to be Episopalian or Lutheran to go there. They just want volunteers who want to help. Good luck and God Bless you and everyone on the coast.

Lorri,

We have also worked at Camp Coast Care in Long Beach. What an incredible job they are doing there!!! A friend from New York has actually given up his apartment and job, placed his possessions in storage, and is working at Camp Coast Care "for the duration". Our daughter worked there for 7 weeks, sleeping in a tent and working in the food/clothing distribution tent. Several folks from our church have gone down to work there also, including my husband and myself. As you say, it was the most wonderful and sad thing we will ever do. Our lives have been changed in immeasurable ways by the experience we had. We firmly believe that the people of the Gulf Coast of Mississippi are incredible. WE were the ones who were blessed by the opportunity to work there. While we were there, people from all faiths were working together - Baptists, Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans etc. etc. etc. No one cared what church we were from. Everyone cared that we were all there to work and pray together. Thank YOU, Mississippi, for blessing us so richly! You are amazing people. You will survive. We are here for you.

Kimberly is my daughter. My husband & I are so grateful to Habitat for Humanity. We lost our home and everything in it we are trying to rebuild as I type. It is hard to get any contractors now espically (reasonable) contractors. My home maybe 1/3 complete now. Thank God for the volunteers and all the Faith based organizations. I have two other sisters who have majors damage also. I'd like to thanks all the people who took time to write such wonderful messages to Kimberly, Kameron & Brandon. May God bless all of you. Keep all the Gulf Coast residents in your prayers. You don't know how much it helps us. I'm a VA nurse and have been there 29 years. My job in Gulfport was closed in August 2005 due to Katrina now we have been moved to the Biloxi VA. I travel 84 miles round trip to get there. It isn't good with these gas prices but I am grateful I have my job. So may others have no job. Kimberly is also traveling a longer route. All due to no bridges. I know how grateful she is to have her job. Again thank you and God bless you all.

bless you Pamela Williams....and All of our Mississippi friends!....working people are the bakebone of our society!....you Go girl!!!

To Cher and all those from around this country who have been volunteers in the Gulf Coast region......I, too went to Bay St. Louis to help in the cleanup and rebuilding. Like Cher, I came away with so much more than I brought. The people of Miss. get to your heart and soul. The pull to go back is great. You make "connections" when you go there. You meet people who have had their lives torn apart. You forget your own troubles and realize some of them don't matter too much. So, this summer, if you have any time, even a few days, get a group together, or go yourself, and see what it is all about. God Bless all of those who are rebuilding their lives. YOU are NOT forgotten.

after 29 years of service at a VA hospital...I .think it's us who should say thank you Pamela Williams- Martin for taking care of our Vets. after that long I think your a Veteran Too

Yes, I seen alot of folks from Miss. trying to rebuild, and put their lives back to norm. The thing I could not understand was the help to those that were not in harms way or in need, being helped first. Cleaning up their ten acre lots, when there was people that didn't even have a home. The thing I was most impressed with was the volunteers. God bless each and every one of you. Thats what Americas about, not the contractors robbing the ones in need.