The need for flood relief volunteers continues to grow, as Lakeshore Area Regional Recovery of Indiana works to contact the thousands of homeowners who registered with FEMA after the September 2008 floods in Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties.

“Many of those homeowners are our most vulnerable citizens; the elderly, the disabled and single parents,” said LARRI director Jane Delligatti.

Hundreds have already waited almost a year to find the help needed to restore their homes. New cases are brought to LARRI almost every day adding to those already approved and ready for volunteer construction crews.However, the supply of volunteers dwindles as vacation season comes to a close and school begins.

“We are grateful for groups like The Brethren Disaster Ministries that have made a long-term commitment to the recovery efforts in our area,” said volunteer coordinator Rhonda Carlson, “but we still need more volunteers.” 

LARRI, a term-term recovery committee formed to assist survivors of the September 2008 floods, depends almost entirely on volunteer labor. Carlson said there is a great need for handyman level construction volunteers as well as teams to tackle the ‘muck and gut’ needs that continue to surface.

For more information or to volunteer with Lakeshore Area Regional Recovery of Indiana, contact volunteer coordinator Rhonda Carlson at (219) 836-1325 x102 or email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .