May 1, 2008
Gulfport's Recovery Based In Part On Qatar's Generosity

By Brad Kessie
WLOX

GULFPORT (WLOX) -- There's an international link to south Mississippi's hurricane recovery efforts. This story starts 7,800 miles away, in the country of Qatar. It ends on a street in west Gulfport, a spot where Qatar's generosity has put families back in homes.

That street is 44th Avenue. Since the storm, it's been converted into a collection of Habitat for Humanity homes. On Wednesday, volunteers from the St. Louis area constructed two more homes for south Mississippi hurricane victims.

Paul Schippel said his group came down for a week of hard work building new homes, "because I think the people down here need some help."

Schippel's group drove about 600 miles to get here.

Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thahni came from half a world away to check on the rebuilding mission.

"You know in the crisis, we found ourselves neighbors," the emir explained during a tour of a Habitat construction project, "and we are so happy to see this development."

The emir's rebuilding work was done, not with hammers and nails, but with his country's financial resources. The people of Qatar invested $100 million in a Katrina recovery fund for the entire gulf coast region.

"I am really happy to see what's going on here," he said.

As soon as the emir stepped off a bus on 44th Avenue, he met Rodney Hart. Hart was one of the recipients of Qatar's generosity. On the emir's very brief tour of Gulfport, Hart got a rare chance to say thank you for his new Habitat home.

"That means a lot to me," Hart said. "It's a new start, a new beginning. And I hope it gets better every time."

After meeting Mr. Hart and Habitat for Humanity International's CEO, Governor Barbour escorted the Sheikh and his entourage past several other Habitat homes on 44th Avenue that the Qatar Katrina Fund made possible.

"I'm really proud with the volunteers who left their houses and they came here to do such a good job, which we are seeing now," the emir said.

Roughly $30 million of the $100 million collected by the Qatar Katrina Fund has been spent on recovery project in Mississippi. Those projects include Habitat homes, and a new Pass Christian Boys and Girls Club.

Video:

www.wlox.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp

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