Trip to New Orleans

Our trip to New Orleans was enlightening. I was there in March, and I am glad to say that there has been a tremendous amount of debris removed. There are no longer mountains of soggy personal possessions, dry wall and insulation spilling into the road everywhere. Mnay houses have been gutted; however there are some that seem untouched. The city of New Orleans has started tagging the untouched houses for demolition. In the upper 9th Ward most of the houses were brick, and so the shell of the house remains. These were nice homes, the type you would see back home. I wondered what has become of the families that lived in these houses, and what has happened that would cause them to walk away from their homes without trying to salvage any of the value.

There were a few FEMA trailers around. To have a FEMA trailer in your driveway you have to have a building permit, so these home owners are starting the long process of rebuilding. In the areas of Slidell where we are working there are trailers in almost every driveway. While it is hard to imagine living in a camper for a year, at least those folk are making progress. In the 9th Ward there are still whole blocks with no progress being made, and then some with a single FEMA trailer. There are no streetlights and in many areas, no police patrol. I try to imagine the courage and hope it must take to be the first home owner to make the commitment to stay and rebuild.

The Lower 9th Ward has also had a lot of debris removed, and the grass is taller. Other than that, nothing has changed. The silence is deafening.

We've heard over and over that folks like us are critical to the recovery of this area. I pray that we will continue to be able to be a blessing to our sisters and brothers in this devastated area.

Kathy from TRCP