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!

Post NOLA 2011

Well, there is only so much I can put into words about my emotions post-NOLA 2011. In my opinion, this trip was actually better than last years, and I am so happy I was given the chance to chaperon for the freshmen and first years. Instead of witnessing the destruction for my first time, I was able to witness those around me react to their first view of it. As a group, I feel like this trip allowed everyone to bond very well, and I was able to meet and get to know most of the group on the trip. The ride back was a lot better than I expected, as my van and I decided to delve into some "interesting" games, to say the least. Anyway, I'm more than ecstatic overall about this trip, and the fact that I was able to meet and establish a relationship with a homeowner this year. I really hope I'll be able to chaperon again next year, but if not I will figure out a way to somehow get down there again. I hope my presence was appreciated and I hope that everyone enjoyed the trip just as much as I did. Peace and love from Decker.

Looking Back

I just left the first Bonner meeting for the Spring semester of 2011. At the meeting, alot of my friends were wearing "Who Dat" t shirts and saints hats/sweatshirts. It shows that the NOLA morale is still high while we are entering out Spring semester. I am so grateful to have been apart of an experience that has changed my life forever. Volunteering can bring me to places around the world, as well as, bring direct service to individuals in need. Volunteering brings thebest of both worlds into my reality.

Van Ride Home

The van ride home from New Orleans allowed me to become closer to Bonners whom I have never talked to before. I sat next to Laura in the van and found out how incredibly hilarious she really is. I now know her whole life story and what she plans on doing after college. Also, we played games in the van ride that brought us all closer.

Esther and Ryan Gale were great drivers and always made the can ride interesting with their music playlists and jokes. I took a few hours, during the long van ride, to think back on my experience in New Orleans and realized a few things.

First, New Orleans is in no way broken. The morale of New Orleans is still high and they share a close bond that I do not have within my own community back in Toms River.
Also, I realized how much volunteers can impact a community with coming down and helping out families who have lost their homes and other resources.

Final Thoughts on NOLA

A few days have gone by since I returned from New Orleans and I've had some time to think about my overall experience in New Orleans. I feel like I saw two sides of New Orleans. When I went to the Ninth Ward, I saw entire blocks destroyed and left untouched. On countless homes, the X's left by rescue squads seemed like tattoos which signified the grim reality of what happened to this city five years ago. There was still so much work left to be done. I also saw the other side of New Orleans. I saw the famous French Quarter and heard plenty of amazing music. I saw the pride that the people of New Orleans have in their city (and football team) and their determination to bring the city back to what it was before the hurricane. There is this spirit present in New Orleans that is hard to describe. I saw it not only in the French Quarter, but also in the neighborhood we worked in for the week and all over the city, even in the most devastated areas. We can't forget about New Orleans and we cannot let this amazing city die. If we do, then a crucial part of American culture will die with it.

One of my favorite musical artists, Lil Wayne, is from New Orleans (and I got to visit his old neighborhood which was so cool) and he wrote a song about post-Katrina New Orleans called "Tie My Hands". It is a truly beautiful song and I want to end this post with an excerpt from it:

Born right here in the USA
But due to tragedy, looked on by the whole world as a refugee
So, accept my emotion, do not take it as an offensive gesture
It's just the epitome of my soul
And I must be me
We got spirit y'all
We got spirit
We got soul y'all
We got soul
They don't want us to see, But we already know

Home

Two days later and after a heavy consumption of caffieininated products we are all home safe with classes starting tomorrow. The trip was a great experience and I am very glad that I was given the opportunity to go again. I hope to keep in touch with Irma, the homeowner who's home we finished and returned to on Friday to give her a card and a stuffed animal- as her bedroom was filled with them and she mentioned her love for them. The trip back, though long, allowed more time for those in each van to bond over delerious jokes and over-played songs on the radio. I hope to be given the opportunity to chaperone the trip again next year. It was an amazing trip and not only did I learn more about the situation in New Orleans, but I also learned a lot about myself and the people around me.

Leaving New Orleans

Friday, January 14, 2010

Unfortunately, due to prior commitments, I had to leave New Orleans a little bit early. So now I sit in the airport waiting for my flight but desperately wanting to be back at the United Saints with the rest of the group!

As I was walking out of the apartments, suitcase in hand, kayla and I turned and looked at each other. We paused for a moment waiting to see who would say it first. We both then blurted out "Do you want to move down here with me and just do this all the time?" As we walked down the stairs, through the church and out to the van we talked about how amazing it would be and started planning. With big smiles on our faces, we decided were going to make this happen!

Looking back on this week it is hard to find the right words to describe my experience. Seeing all the devastation still present 5 years after the storm was a jaw dropping experience for me. While sitting in the van during the driving tour of the 9th ward, I found my self staring in awe of how little has been done. Hearing stories about people hiring contractors who stole their money or being fined for not being able to keep up with their property broke my heart. Additionally, I am still hung up on seeing the X's on the houses. For one reason, in the top of the X was date in which the house was searched. It was upsetting to see that some of the house had not been checked until weeks after the storm hit! Another shocking sight was seeing the Xs, consisting of the number of bodies found, on house that were completely renovated. To me, the gruesome markings seem to cast a dark shadow on the neighborhood, but to the people who lived there, it represent everything they've gone through, all they have accomplished and how strong they have become because of it all.

I hope that with the help of organizations like the United Saints and volunteers like all us NOLA can be completely restored! The natives are by far the most passionate and grateful people I've ever met and they deserve all the help they can get!

Lastly, the friendships I've created on this trip are incomparable! By doing this service I've had the opportunity to form incredible bonds with incredible people. I'm looking forward to spending more time with everyone back on campus and continuing to go on service trips, whether that means chaperoning or planning our own! I am lucky to be able to surround my self with great friends while doing something I love! While preforming service is in and of its self a rewarding experience, it was truly enriched by the company with whom I shared the experience!

Last Day

Today is our last day in New Orleans! In the past week, I have been able to work together with other TCNJ Bonners to finish Irma's house. We met with her again today, after finishing her house house yesterday. We brought her a teddy bear as a parting gift and I look forward to hopefully meeting with her again next time I visit the city. Today, we went to another house and began to tear down the ceiling- the beginning stages of demo and gutting the house for reconstruction. It is was a weird feeling completing a house and turning it over to the homeowner, then the next day working on tearing down a ceiling to rebuild one. My experiences so far in New Orleans, including past service trips, seemed to come full circle this trip through conversations with my homeowner and trips into the French Quarter and enjoying the culture. Tonight, we are going to a restaurant as a group and it should be a nice way to end the trip. I am excited to go back to TCNJ and energized for another semester of service!

The Final Act

The past couple days were like the downturn section of a book. It was much more emotional and things were not going as planned. After two days without seeing my homeowner, Booker, our faces were gleaming as we saw him walk up the street. A regular day quickly changed into one of excitement. My site greeted Booker as if we have not seen him in years! He came with a hand full of lottery tickets, a small gift from him to us. It was not much, but to my group it meant a lot. Booker was originally going to go to dinner with us, but because of unfortunate reasons he had to cancel today. A complete let down, but also understandable. After work, yesterday, we came back to our rooms to find that our electricity had gone out. Also, the hot water ran out this morning. Although the Bonners were thoroughly disappointed, we still went out to enjoy some "Nawlins" dinning and work passionately on our projects today.

One house done, many more to go.

Yesterday we finished Irma's house. It looks absolutely amazing and she was so happy to see it completely finished. It felt great because last year I worked on a home in it's beginning stages and this year I had the chance to work on and complete a house. Irma is a wonderful, deserving woman who wad kind enough to buy us a King Cake for our efforts. It was delicious and I was lucky enough to get the piece with the baby inside! This means I need to buy the next King Cake so I promised Irma I will buy one for her the next time I'm down here which will hopefully be a year from now (trying to keep the tradition). Because we were finished there, we were sent to a new site today. The house was badly hit by Katrina, so we are doing demo work and gutting the ceilings. Unfortunately today was our last day of work, but hopefully United Saints will have consistent groups of volunteers to finish more and more houses for the wonderful people down here in the Crescent City.

NOLA

I’ve heard of the devastation the disastrous Hurricane Katrina had caused to New Orleans, but didn’t believe it as I was coming into the French Quarter. The city of New Orleans looks beautiful and someone just by looking at the city wouldn’t believe that something as bad as flooding of 80 percent of the city had occurred, or something as monstrous as about 1800 people dying from the torrential rains that hit this once prosperous city. When taking a tour of the city, and different parts of the city that were drastically affected, I honestly didn’t expect what I saw. I expected a lot more work to be done to the home and streets that were affected by hurricane Katrina. Instead the roads were horrible and homes were still abandoned and left with no foundation. I am honestly appalled with the lack of effort the government has put to make this city at any better. Homes are left vacant and instead helping out the residents who still live in the city, they tax them to the point where they can’t afford to pay.

Today we only had a half day of work and since we finished up our last project yesterday, we began a new project. We were taking apart the ceiling of a house abandoned after Katrina. It was nice to be able to see a second site before leaving tomorrow morning. After work, Tommy, Ryan, and I went to Miss Irma's house (the owner of the last house we finished) to drop off a card and gift we got her (a teddy bear since she told us about how she collects them and loves them) to thank her for her hospitality and friendliness over the past week. As the week comes to a close I look forward to my last night in New Orleans and have already begun to think about how I hope I can come back next year to chaperon the same trip.

1/14/11
Today was a half day working on Booker's house. However, today is the first day that I was able to meet Booker. He was not the 71 year old that I expected. Booker was in better shape than all of us!
He is very nice and down to Earth. Booker welcomed me right into the team and started talking about the house.

The day was very short and right now we are all idle waiting for our next move. The power and heat is out in all of our apartments and everyone is coming down with a stomach flu so I am a bit scared to go into my room because I am just getting over bronchitis.

Tonight all of the Bonners, including myself, are supposed to go out to dinner and to a club that allows eighteen to enter. I am very excited to bond with everyone and to have a good time.

Overall, this trip has opened my eyes to the reality of a disaster and that it is hard to rely on people. Most of the homeowners came to United Saints only after their relief money was stolen by greedy contractors. "One Man's tragedy is another man's fortune."
United Saints has become a safe haven for these people and it is the type of organization that I would like to volunteer for someday.

A Great Birthday!

Yesterday was my 20th birthday and I have to say that I'm very happy to have spent it here in New Orleans with some great people! After everyone sang happy birthday to me in the morning (which was very nice) I along with Shaun, Alaine, Gayatri, and Jenn headed to a home that needs a lot of work. Yesterday was actually my first day working on a house as I was previously painting a mural. I'm very glad that I had the opportunity to work on a home because it's truly rewarding.

Although I was not able to meet my homeowner, I did meet Mr. Booker who is the homeowner of another house that the Bonners have been working on. Even though I only spoke to him for about 5 minutes or so, it was an amazing feeling. Mr. Booker is an energetic and postive person who is just full of happiness. He must have thanked me about 5 times for being here in New Orleans working on houses and it gave me a great feeling.

Today I worked on a different house and my job was to paint the exterior. It was a great experience because I was on 9ft ladders and that is something that I have never done before. However, once I was up there everything was okay and I was able to paint away.

I'm sad that today is our last day here, but being in New Orleans has motivated me even more to continue serving our community once I get back to New Jersey.