Before
I could start my NOMADS projects in early 2011, I was postured to lead a
mission to New Orleans, LA, - calling it NOLA
for short – during the first week of January 2011. This mission was done through my church to follow
an earlier mission to Mexico. NOLA was
intended to add more spark to the slight interest that my church had in mission
work. The timing of the NOLA mission was
to engage young folks who might be in college.
As it turned out, the only ‘youth’ was my college-aged daughter. So, with her sleep interrupted early on New
Year’s Day, I picked her up and we headed south.
Our
project was to help in the final stages of rebuilding a home in the area around
New Orleans that was flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The mission was in support of the St. Bernard
Project. We had six members of our team:
two couples from my church, my daughter, and me.
The
adventure started early – January 1, 2011.
My daughter and I decided to drive south to Louisiana so we could use
our truck for transportation in and around New Orleans. Two other members of our team – man and wife
- drove separately. The Lord blessed my
daughter and me with a good trip with no problems. That was not so for the other couple. They planned to fly into New Orleans. Due to mechanical problems with the plane, their
trip took a little longer than anticipated.
The flyers left their home for the airport close to the time that I left
home to pick up my daughter. The
mechanical problems caused them to spend the day at the airport before catching
a later flight to a mid-point. There,
they remained overnight. The next day
brought more adventure. They could find no
seats on a direct flight to New Orleans so they flew into Mississippi, rented a
car, and drove the rest of the way. My
daughter and I got a hotel room along the way.
Early
the next morning we headed out on our second leg of the trip. We figured our friends would meet up with us
later in the afternoon. As we arrived in
the NOLA area, we received a text message by cell telephone – our friends were
right behind us! Goes to show you – the miraculous
transportation methods in our world today may be diverse and highly efficient,
and amazingly manage to get people to the same place at the same time. My daughter and I stopped by the road and
waited a few minutes for our friends to catch up. Surprisingly, four of us arrived
simultaneously, having left our respective homes around the same time the
previous morning.
The
remaining third of our team was another couple driving their way south. Within minutes of our arrival at our
temporary residence in NOLA, the couple arrived, in spite of being turned
around on a side-road for a bit. Now
that is what I call good travel coordination!
A
local independent church provided our lodging and the folks took great care of
us. The pastor had carved out a few
rooms in a large donated warehouse. He
had a sanctuary, kitchen, bunking rooms for males and females, bathroom
facilities, dining room, and several other rooms. The church provided our lodging and meals but
not the work projects. Noteworthy, the
church was located beside a great earth levee that separated us from the mighty
Mississippi River. We could stand on the
levee and see huge freighters stretching higher than where we stood. We learned that during the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina the floodwaters measured over our heads while we stood on top
of the levee.
Saint
Bernard Project, located a few miles from our lodging, coordinated the work we
were to perform. On Monday morning we
headed to the Project office and met with Sister Judy, our contact for the
week-long mission. We found her to be a
true blessing from God. Small in stature
and polite to the extreme, she gave us an overview of the flooding and origin
of Saint Bernard Project. We learned how
the area became flooded after the hurricane and the plight of survivors.
As
we prepared to leave her office for our house project, my daughter expressed an
interest in working for Americorp, a group of young people who work around the
country for good projects. Our team
suggested she go back into the office to find out how to join Americorp. Somewhat reluctantly, she went back in and
ten minutes or so later she returned with the biggest smile on her face. Her new mission in life was to work with
Americorp.
Our
task for the week was to work on final stages of remodeling a home owned by a
grandmother who lived alone. Twelve feet
or so of water had flooded the woman’s home.
As I understand the story, she attempted to repair her home using her
life savings. The contractor took her
money and ran. Using what money she had
left, she started again. The contractor
did the work but used tainted drywall from another country. She was able to move back into her home but
after a couple months, chemicals from the drywall made her home unfit for human
habitation. Now, unable to live in her
house and no money to fix it, she applied for help from Saint Bernard Project. With the help of volunteers, through the
Grace of our Lord and Savior, her home was being remodeled.
The
photographs appended to this posting tell the story of our work. They also show how much we enjoyed this
mission project. The Lord brought us
together to experience New Orleans and results of the Katrina flood.
At
the end of our mission, we returned to our respective homes. My daughter headed to Richmond, VA, where she
attended Virginia Commonwealth University.
She applied to Americorp and was accepted. Unfortunately, the Federal Government, which
funds most of Americorp’s operations, failed to provide funding to the
organization. Consequently, my daughter
is searching for an alternative opportunity to serve the Lord and help others
in need.
I
returned to my cabin in West Virginia to await my trip to Florida and my first
NOMADS project.
Photos:
|
New Orleans is located at or below sea level. |
|
Though it was years after the flooding, damaged structures were everywhere. |
|
Even the city's infrastructure still needs repair |
|
Standing on the levee, I could easily see a freighter on the Mississippi River |
|
The levee separates the Mississippi River from homes |
|
We learned the water was this high - over the levee |
|
Sleeping areas. Host Pastor on right |
|
Great kitchen facility |
|
Our dining room |
|
Our workplace |
|
The home was raised above ground |
|
Our project manager describes our work for the week |
|
Work included painting |
|
Measuring and installing trim |
|
More painting |
|
Some floor work |
|
Painting trim |
|
Talking about work |
|
Installing trim |
|
Painting doors |
|
Relaxing for lunch |
|
Seeing the city lights |
|
and sights |
|
and culture |
|
Wonderful city to see |
|
Our team! |
No comments:
Post a Comment