Orange Grove has hosted teams from across the U.S. Photo by David Barnhart, PDA Fall 2005 – Spring 2009
The Orange Grove Presbyterian Volunteer Village in Gulfport, Mississippi, closed on April 23, 2009, when the last volunteers departed.
This Presbyterian Volunteer Village was one of the first that PDA started in response to Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the Mississippi Gulf Coast on August 30, 2005.
Set up on the site of the New Life Presbyterian Church, Orange Grove was first erected with tents and then changed into the newer pod-style village as the pods became available. Orange Grove was an important location for some of the heaviest response by volunteers from all over the United States as well as many volunteer groups from international locations, all coming together to do the work of Jesus Christ in rebuilding homes and lives impacted by this powerful storm.
Orange Grove served as the home base for PDA Gulf operations until its closing in April, when PDA operations moved to headquarters in New Orleans.
During its operation, Orange Grove hosted over 400 groups of volunteers comprising over 6,000 volunteers who contributed over 35,000 volunteer work days of rebuilding homes and lives.
Many roadmap signs posted by groups are being saved and shipped to the Presbyterian Center in Louisville as a memorial to this successful mission effort.
Many thanks to the Presbytery of Mississippi and to the now closed congregation of New Life Presbyterian Church for hosting the Orange Grove Presbyterian Volunteer Village. Many thanks to all the faithful volunteers who generously donated their time and treasure in this endeavor.
Volunteers are still needed in Mississippi and Louisiana in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Hurricane Ike and flooding in the Midwest last year also created a great need for volunteer work teams in Texas and Iowa. Please call the PDA Call Center at (866) 732-6121 if your team can help!
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