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Project Hope thanks sponsors

To the editor:
Dear sponsors: On behalf of the 41 Roseau, Minn. flood families, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for having the donation cans in your businesses.
The general public and perhaps even your employees, raised a total of $1,897.79. These donations were important to these families because all of them lost everything they had.
It might interest you to know that we have no expenses, so a donation to us is spent entirely on the familiesí needs. Of course, all donations made to us are tax-deductible.
Here is why the people of Roseau are in such bad shape.
The state of Minnesota gave $32 million for Roseau flood relief. The bulk of the money went to the city for flood prevention.
Some of the money was given to business owners who had heavy losses due to the flood. The balance of the money went to the farmers in the surrounding area if they lost crops or livestock.
If they lost crops or livestock they were also eligible for money to rebuild their farm homes.
The 41 families who are under our wing received nothing. FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) did give out some money but if you were working they subtracted for that. If you were retired and had money in the bank, they subtracted from that. End result - most families received around $300 from FEMA.
It didnít do them much good.
Once again, thank you for your help: Forest Lake Times, Forest Jewelers (FL), Northern Automotive (FL), Rolseth Drugs (FL), Forest Lake Cycle (FL), Wyoming Trustworthy Hardware, Koepís Village Bakery (NB), North Branch Cafe, Corning Revere (NB), Kitchen Collection (NB), Karlís Appliance (NB), Village Inn (Wyo.), Wyoming Amoco, Carquest (Wyo.), NAPBCO (FL), Rapid Press (FL), NAPPA (FL), Snyder Drugs (FL), Ace Hardware (FL), Petters (FL), Gentle Dental (FL), Ronís TV (FL), Dairy Queen (FL), Family Dollar (FL), Family Dollar (Chisago City).
Christ G. Bairaktaris,
chairman
Project Hope North, Inc.
Forest Lake
Editorís note: Project Hope North began after the 1997 flooding in the Red River Valley. They have helped people get back on their feet since then, from Grand Forks to the tornado victims at Granite Falls, to some of the Carlos Avery fire victims in 2000. They are working with families in Roseau who were flooded out last summer. They help by purchasing the basic needs for everyday living. Project Hope North is based in Forest Lake.

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