Over a month after Hurricane Katrina unleashed its devastation on the Gulf Coast, those in the hardest hit areas are just now able to return to assess the damage to their homes and businesses. This week, BTW spoke to four of the affected booksellers, who are beginning to rebuild their lives.

To provide assistance to the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita as quickly as possible, the Bookseller Relief Fund Board created a two-phase relief process and set October 15 as the deadline for applications for relief under Phase One of the plan.

On Saturday, October 1, many ABA member booksellers joined in a special effort to raise money for the Bookseller Relief Fund, which is providing humanitarian aid to booksellers affected by disaster conditions in the Gulf Coast region, as well as for future emergency situations. Booksellers were encouraged to donate a percentage of the day's sales (to be determined by the individual store) to the fund, which is providing assistance for such items as temporary housing, food, clothing, transportation, medical expenses, and/or other personal items lost or damaged.

Since its inception, the Bookseller Relief Fund (BRF) has had the support of booksellers, publishers, distributors, regional associations, and others in the book industry. Last week, the fund was bolstered even further, when Independent Publishers Group President Mark Suchomel presented a check for $25,000 to the BRF.

The American Booksellers Association is encouraging as many member stores as possible to join together on Saturday, October 1, to raise funds for the Bookseller Relief Fund (BRF), which will provide bookstore owners and employees with humanitarian relief for such items as temporary housing, food, clothing, transportation, medical expenses, and/or other personal items lost or damaged. (The funds will not be granted to rebuild a business.)

On Tuesday, September 27, the Southeast Booksellers Association (SEBA) announced that it was matching ABA's initial contribution to the Bookseller Relief Fund with a $25,000 contribution from the SEBA Board Reserve Fund.

As the Gulf Coast region deals with the aftermath of Hurricane Rita, most accounts coming out of the area indicate that, while the storm's wrath was devastating in its destructive force in some areas, the consequences could have been far more tragic. First projected to hit the Houston area, the storm veered eastward to less populated areas. Nonetheless, Rita still packed a terrible and tragic punch, hitting towns along the Texas-Louisiana border with over 100-mph winds and leaving them under up to 15 feet of water.

On Tuesday, September 20, the Bookseller Relief Fund (BRF) Board convened via conference call to establish administrative guidelines and a process for distribution of monies from the fund, which was established by ABA in response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

As the Gulf Coast works toward reconstruction in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the book industry is building initiatives to assist those affected by the storm.

As news stories about the death, suffering, and destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina are replaced by accounts of the early steps the public and private sectors are taking toward reconstruction, the book industry, too, continued its initiatives to assist Gulf Coast residents affected by the storm.