Jehovah's Witnesses usually invoke an image of men and women walking door-to-door, offering teachings of the Bible.

But there's much different image of the hundreds of Witnesses in Louisiana and Mississippi, rebuilding their "brothers' and sisters' " homes, while also pitching in to help others whose homes are in disrepair.

Ottawa resident Paula Stacy, who has been a Witness since 1968, recently traveled to Marrero, La., for a week as part of a Hurricane Katrina disaster relief volunteer effort.

Stacy spent much of her time on "mold remediation" detail, ripping out walls and other items covered in mold and disposing of them safely.

"Where there's mold, everything has to come out," said Stacy, who returned home Saturday.

Because of the dangers of inhaling or being exposed to the mold, Stacy and fellow volunteers were covered from head to foot and wore masks. All the equipment used is soaked in sporicide at the end of the day.

"We would work 15 minutes, then rest 15 minutes," she said, adding this type of work pays an average of $100 per hour for those who do it professionally.

The greater New Orleans area previously had 21 congregations, but since the hurricane struck, only one is left.

Since Stacy's relief group set up camp, they have repaired and replaced 465 roofs and served 50,000 meals in the area.

Immediately following the storm, Witnesses organized teams to assess the number of Witness' homes and Kingdom Halls that had been damaged or destroyed.

As of February, the Long Beach, Miss., relief group reported of the 632 Witness' homes damaged, 531 had been renovated. Of the 17 Kingdom Halls with severe roof damage, 16 had new roofs.

In Louisiana, of the 2,700 homes needing repair, work on 1,119 had been completed. Of the 50 Kingdom Halls damaged, half had been repaired.

While the needs of fellow Witnesses is a priority, Stacy explained their relief efforts extend to many neighbors who are not Witnesses.

"Jehovah's Witnesses don't just help their own people ... But we're going to take care of our family first," explained Stacy, who is a painter and wallpaper hanger in Ottawa.

"If we were working on a roof (of a Witness), and a neighbor asked for help, we would do his roof, too."

Stacy was surprised at the disrepair of the area, as the storm hit nearly nine months ago.

"I didn't see anything being rebuilt -- except the Superdome," she said. "There are still neighborhoods that don't have electricity and water."

Jehovah's Witnesses have congregations throughout the world, and many from foreign countries took part in the relief effort.

Stacy is considered a "pioneer," which means she is in full-time ministry and devotes 70 hours a month walking door-to-door and teaching the Bible -- a primary duty of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Although she was tempted to stay longer, Stacy said she had to get back to her husband and other responsibilities.