SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 BATON ROUGE, LA – As part of the Telmate Cares program, a team of seven volunteers from inmate communications leader, Telmate, fanned out across south-central Louisiana for one week, to help people devastated by historic floods in storm-ravaged areas along the Gulf Coast last month.

The volunteers’ base of operation deployed its first team on the ground in Lafayette Parish, then focused on surrounding areas including the hard-hit communities of Livingston Parish and Denham Springs. Volunteers had little information to go on regarding the conditions on the ground. Rental cars had to be rented as far away as Houston, Texas, and supplies were picked up at big box stores along the way into Louisiana.

Upon arriving, members assisted in everything from helping homeowners move furniture to gutting homes. Racing against time in an attempt to salvage each structure, they also removed waterlogged walls, sheetrock, insulation, and flooring — as well as offering emotional support to distressed flood survivors who in many cases lost everything.

Survivors watched the floods overtake their homes in a matter of hours as waters surrounded neighborhoods and communities. But with support offered by the Telmate team, homeowners said they had hope they will recover.

For volunteers who were involved, it was a way to give back to the communities Telmate serves. “The opportunity offered by Telmate to provide relief to victims of flooding in Louisiana was incredibly rewarding and humbling,” said volunteer Michael Arehart.

This was the fastest deployment of a volunteering effort to date in Telmate’s history.

Help people affected by the Louisiana floods and donate to an organization of your choice.

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About Telmate Cares: The mission of the Telmate Cares Program is to give back, honor and improve the lives of the people in the communities we serve.

About Telmate: Telmate is a leading provider of inmate phones and video visitation, secure messaging, mobile applications, inmate tablets and investigator tools. Telmate’s cutting-edge platforms are deployed in over 300 correctional facilities in North America spanning nearly all U.S. states and Canadian provinces. Telmate is headquartered in San Francisco, California. To find out more about Telmate visit www.telmate.com.