The Comeback

“Neighborhoods are still dark, garbage piles up on the street, and people are still being left to fend for themselves. The negligence of the safety and security of a once proud city is a nation's shame.” These were my first thoughts when I arrived in New Orleans last year. It was my first time ever visiting the city and unfortunately I had to see it in the condition it was in. It was six years after the devastation that I finally was able to experience the new culture NOLA had to offer. Fortunately, the proud citizens of New Orleans were standing firm and continued to hold their head up proud and started to rebuild their great city embracing the culture I had just witnessed. I was very grateful and honored to be part of their mission in helping others who did not have adequate housing, sufficient food, and a low morale.

I will be going again for the second time and I realized how important it was to observe how devastating the aftermath of Katrina was. Throughout the Fall Semester, there have been scheduled viewings of “When the Levees Broke” and I thought to myself: “Well I already saw the movie, why do I need to see it again?” As the day of our return to NOLA was quickly approaching, I decided to see the movie once more. “When the Levees Broke” is truly devastating in its portrait of a great American city's collapse. Interviews with survivors, archival footage, and news reports paint a damning portrait of failure at almost every possible level. Most damning is the picture of federal inaction. While people drowned in their attics, President Bush was on vacation. While people collapsed from heat prostration and dehydration Condoleeza Rice bought shoes at an upscale store. The minutes became hours, the hours became days, and the cavalry simply did not arrive. Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath is certainly something not to be ignored.

I do not want to get into the specifics of who was at fault for the events that occurred; however, I did want to mention how inspiring it was to be able to visit New Orleans and finally lend a helping hand to citizens who needed it the most. During my stay there I helped in reconstructing the side of a house whose owner was Mr. Booker. He was a 70 year old man who should have lived the life of retirement but now has to rebuild his house and life again. I hope that I can visit him once again and see how he is keeping up seven years after the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. I also felt very close to the Bonners I went with during our stay. I bonded with some great people and I am grateful for that. I hope that I can do the same with a new group of people once more. It is definitely important for Bonners to comeback as a team and do what we do best: to make the world a better place one individual at a time.

The Comeback

“Neighborhoods are still dark, garbage piles up on the street, and people are still being left to fend for themselves. The negligence of the safety and security of a once proud city is a nation's shame.” These were my first thoughts when I arrived in New Orleans last year. It was my first time ever visiting the city and unfortunately I had to see it in the condition it was in. It was six years after the devastation that I finally was able to experience the new culture NOLA had to offer. Fortunately, the proud citizens of New Orleans were standing firm and continued to hold their head up proud and started to rebuild their great city embracing the culture I had just witnessed. I was very grateful and honored to be part of their mission in helping others who did not have adequate housing, sufficient food, and a low morale.

I will be going again for the second time and I realized how important it was to observe how devastating the aftermath of Katrina was. Throughout the Fall Semester, there have been scheduled viewings of “When the Levees Broke” and I thought to myself: “Well I already saw the movie, why do I need to see it again?” As the day of our return to NOLA was quickly approaching, I decided to see the movie once more. “When the Levees Broke” is truly devastating in its portrait of a great American city's collapse. Interviews with survivors, archival footage, and news reports paint a damning portrait of failure at almost every possible level. Most damning is the picture of federal inaction. While people drowned in their attics, President Bush was on vacation. While people collapsed from heat prostration and dehydration Condoleeza Rice bought shoes at an upscale store. The minutes became hours, the hours became days, and the cavalry simply did not arrive. Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath is certainly something not to be ignored.

I do not want to get into the specifics of who was at fault for the events that occurred; however, I did want to mention how inspiring it was to be able to visit New Orleans and finally lend a helping hand to citizens who needed it the most. During my stay there I helped in reconstructing the side of a house whose owner was Mr. Booker. He was a 70 year old man who should have lived the life of retirement but now has to rebuild his house and life again. I hope that I can visit him once again and see how he is keeping up seven years after the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. I also felt very close to the Bonners I went with during our stay. I bonded with some great people and I am grateful for that. I hope that I can do the same with a new group of people once more. It is definitely important for Bonners to comeback as a team and do what we do best: to make the world a better place one individual at a time.

It is December 2011 and just about one year from the first time I went to New Orleans. I've been planning the upcoming Bonner trip with Tommy and Britt and while reflecting on my first trip to NOLA, I've discovered I never posted my last entry.

My entry today is going to focus on my first working day here in New Orleans. Monday morning Lexy, Laura, Britt, Maria, myself and two students from William and Mary were tasked to a house to do demolition on the interior. When we first arrived at the house, from the outside its windows were not boarded up nor were the outside walls crumbling like other houses in need of demolishing. I thought someone could be living in it at the time and it just needed some fixing up. To my surprise the inside was completely torn apart. Walls had been ripped down, floors were scrapped up, and there were holes in the ceiling. Mike, our United Saints site leader, informed us this home had not been touched since Katrina five years ago. I was taken back by this. How could a completely ruined home not have any work done to it in 5 years?

Before I came to New Orleans, I thought most of the homes would be demolished where they were the worst and the city for the most part was on the next stage of re-building. Much to my amazement, this home, apart from some of the demolition other volunteer teams had recently done, was exactly how Katrina had left it. Unfortunately, the homeowner was unable to visit the site while we were working so I did not get a chance to hear his own account of what happened. Mike informed us the house, which was located in Mid-City, sat in close to 4 feet of water for about a week before the water level was lowered. There was still a visible stain on the outside of the house where the water level had been for days. (The yellowish stain on the left, level to the middle of the window.)

We jumped right in to demolishing some of the walls that needed to be completely rebuilt. Laura and I tackled a concrete wall that used to be part of the bathroom. In full gear- a hard hat, respirator, goggles, gloves and a sledgehammer in hand- we worked on the wall all day. Maria later joined Lexy and Britt with tearing down dry wall in another section of the house.

After a long day, our arms were tired but our hearts were filled with hope. I realized though the work seems to be endless, a few volunteers can really make a difference. We were able to expose the rotten wood that was barely supporting the house so a new team could go in and replace them. Though we were not able to return to the house, later in the week other Bonners were tasked back and were able to rip out the ceiling. Step by step, I know this house will be rebuilt and hopefully be called home again soon.

For our last 3 days in New Orleans, our team was sent to lot to break up some concrete. We were told it would be about the size of a sidewalk, however we came to find out our little part of concrete was about 5 feet wide and stretched the entire length of the lot. The lot we were working on used to be a home now it only contained part of the original foundation and the sidewalk to leading down what used to be the house. Our United Saints site leaders Andy and Kevin informed us the homeowner fell victim to an unfortunate yet surprisingly common trick; the money she was given by the government to start rebuilding was stolen from her by the contractor she paid to rebuild. Left with an overgrowing open lot and no money to rebuild, she now must rely on volunteers and organizations like United Saints to help her.

With only sledgehammers, pickaxes and our passion to help, our team worked tirelessly to pull up the concrete for almost 3 full days. This days were the highlights of my trip. Our team grew closer with each crack of the concrete. The team work needed to lift huge slabs of concrete, the ongoing jokes from earlier in the week and the feeling of accomplishment each time we threw another rock into the dumpster created a lighthearted atmosphere that left us with a lifetime of memories.

Though the work we were doing was a long process with only hand tools, I was proud of what we were doing. This homeowner was hit hard by Hurrican Katrina and then a contractor stole the only money she had available to put towards rebuilding. I’m glad we were able to help her for the beginning of the long journey of rebuilding ahead of her.

As I look back to my experience in New Orleans I am extremely thankful to have had the opportunity to travel to such a beautiful city with some of my best friends to help with rebuilding homes. I got to experience first hand the culture, the history, the devastation and the spirit of the city all in its entirety. I cannot wait to come back!

Post-Trip Thoughts and Feelings

Once again I would LOVE to express my BONNER LOVE. I had a great time on the trip and I am EXTREMELY thankful to have been apart of such a wonderful trip. We all had our ups and downs, but it was still a great trip. Being able to witness firsthand the culture, tragedy, and love of the city was such a great moment in my life. I was able to work on a great mural with the best team ever, and I was also able to meet one of the most fascinating men I have ever met in my life. From eating fried alligator to any other sea food you can think of, to painting and standing on two-story-high scaffolding, I can definitely say that this trip was GREAT! New Orleans, to me, is filled with good and bad. There are obvious signs of Katrina and the flooding still around, but there is also happiness with a strong sense of community and togetherness and vibrant culture all around you. For example, you'll see a wonderful rebuilt home on a street of many destroyed homes. It's ironic and sad to know that everyday you walk out of your new home that you are constantly reminded of that horrible moment in New Orleans history. I am very glad to say that I lent a hand in rebuilding the city and making some sort of change, or that I was able to put a smile on one or two faces because of the work I have done. I truly feel a warmth in my heart because of what I have done and experienced on this trip. Despite getting the unluckiest week, weather wise, during the trip, I can honestly say that I wouldn't mind moving to New Orleans. If possible, I would love to go back down and lend a hand in rebuilding the city. I love New Orleans! Something must be done in order to restore this city. IT still saddens me to know that such poor effort has been made. We must make a difference.

Mid Experience In NOLA [Work Day 4-5]

With the new day starting, I did not know what to expect. I grabbed my regular breakfast of two small bowls of cereal, some orange juice, and a cinnamon raisin bagel. After I packed my lunch I walked into the meeting room, and Darryl, founder of United Saints, began speak to everyone. There were updates on each site as usual. Today I decided to sign my name up for Team Booker. This was probably the second best decision I had made since I had been volunteering. I was now able to experience a more construction based type of volunteer work. I personally felt that this work was easier than painting the mural, but it was also a nice experience. Standing on two stories of scaffolding my very first day on the site was a bit scary, but I overcame the fear in about 3 minutes of standing on the homemade structure. Here, at Mr. Booker's home, we removed old siding, put in insulation, and we also put up some tar paper in order to secure the insulation. The most influential thing about this home wasn't the home itself, but the owner of the home. He was such a fascinating and inspiring man. His birthday actually passed while we were down in NOLA and he had just turned 71. He is in GREAT shape, and he moves as if he were 20 years old. He was able to pass off some knowledge to a young guy like me that I know I will never forget. He told us his story, his family's story, and the story behind his home. I decided to stay longer than our scheduled work time in order to try and help Mr. Booker install a window tarp in his home. I swear that a few of us had to sit and listen to him speak to us about his life for about an hour, and the time just passed along on the warm winter day. I really enjoyed the opportunity to meet this man, and I absolutely loved working on his home.

Early Experience in NOLA [Work Days 1-3]

I was fortunate enough to work on an art mural at a local church that was affected by the storm. The battered church was being constructed to become a Multimedia and Arts Center for local NOLA children. I was very excited to commence work. The weather was cold making it very hard to maintain enthusiasm for the work. Although, with such a great team, I was able to muster up a great amount of passion for the art mural. It was such a great experience and each and everyday there were individuals walking by that exhibited vast amounts of thanks and gratitude. I know you may be wondering why the title is labeled day 1-3 even though this was a 5 day volunteer week. Unfortunately, as our mural was beginning to looking absolutely beautiful our site was shut down. Team Art returned from our lunch break and received the bad news. It was a sad day, but we were assigned with a new task. We had to go around the city and try to find abandoned homes that could possibly be used to paint murals on. This was a great experience. I was able to see a very large amount of the city, good and bad. I was able to go to the 9th Ward and really get a detailed look at the devastation of the flooding and hurricane. I was able to see what efforts are being made in order to rebuild the city also, which, in my perspective, seemed very menial. I was also very fortunate because I was presented with the opportunity to walk into 2 abandoned and destroyed homes. Something that happened during that moment definitely gave me a strong, yet unconditional love for New Orleans. A local man came by and told us to be careful. It meant a lot to me that a man that didn't even know anyone in the group felt obligated to walk over from his home and make sure that we would take proper precaution and remain safe. This "Southern Hospitality" was very heartwarming. After the trip was done, I felt accomplished. I was able to enhance my knowledge about the structure of the city, as well as having laughs and other emotional moments with such a great team. What would happen in the next day I did not know, but I was ready for whatever New Orleans had waiting for me.

Some Final Thoughts

It's been almost a week since we've been back from New Orleans and I've had some time to reflect about our trip. First of all I would like to thank the Bonner staff for giving me the opportunity to go to New Orleans and to have an amazing experience there; I very much appreciate all the hard work that was put into planning this trip.

Looking back on our trip I feel that I have learned a lot about New Orleans. I am much more educated about Katrina and the many hardships that residents had to endure during and after the hurricane. Visiting the lower ninth was an experience that I will never forget. A simple drive through the neighborhood indicates (even 5 1/2 years later) how devastating the destruction was. The X's that rescue groups used to indicate that a house had been checked are still visible on numerous houses and it makes what occurred more of a reality.

Although we witnessed how devastating Katrina was, we also experienced how hopeful, energetic, and spirited the people of New Orleans are. I realized how passionate and determined people are to rebuild New Orleans and it made me feel happy because New Orleans is truly a great city.

All in all, I had a great time in New Orleans and I hope to go back soon because there is still a lot of work to be done!