DAY 6

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 11:22:31 -0500

Friday, February 20, 2009
We returned to the Hume Nursery School this morning to help out with setting up a decorated umbrella contest and a Mardi Gras parade around the neighborhood of the school. Tom was awesome in serving as umbrella contest judge! Our young people helped conduct the parade and also spent time playing with the children before lunch.
This afternoon we packed up in preparation for an extremely early departure tomorrow morning. Then we went down to the French Quarter one more time to have dinner and listen to some great music.
Here are a few photos of our sixth and final day here in New Orleans as well as some final thoughts about the trip from each member of our group:
Ella Formel – This trip made me realize how much we have and how much we should appreciate what we have. And it was great fun! I liked helping people and I liked the parades.
Nora Randolph – Even though I’ve been here before, it still felt new because of the people we met and the stories we heard.
Fiona Brown – It is awesome and amazing that with so many houses not yet restored, everyone still seems happy, excited, and grateful for what they have.
Blake Atwood – So many people are still so positive and upbeat in spite of all the hardships that they have been through.
Sofia Kasem-Samarn – I am glad I came. I felt like we make a difference. I made good friends and had a fun time.
Bryan Hutchinson – It is surprising to see everyone so upbeat even though they have been through so much.
Louisa Carman – It is really incredible that with all the devastation, there is still such a sense of community and so much celebration.
Terry Wise – It is so easy to get caught up in our own story and to not realize that everybody has a story. Taking in the broad range of stories - from tragedy to celebration – helps people come together.
Tom Damrosch – It is inspirational to find so much positive energy in a city where so many people lost so much.
Steve Bridges – I am very proud of the way our young people (and adults) have handled themselves on this trip.

DAY 5

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 09:26:52 -0500

Thursday, February 19, 2009
Today our group was back to working together as one at the Hume Nursery School at Central Congregational Church. We helped with preparations for some special seasonal events that the school has planned for tomorrow. These will include a decorated umbrella contest and a Mardi Gras parade around the neighborhood of the school. Our young people also spent time playing with and reading to the students at the school.
After taking a much need rest break in the afternoon, we went to two more Mardi Gras parades. They ended up coming down the street one right after the other and they were the best parades we have seen. But we all got pretty cold by the time both parades were over.
Tomorrow will be our last day working here in New Orleans. We will be back at the Hume Nursery School in the morning and back at St. Matthew’s Church in the afternoon. We will need to clean up and pack up in preparation for an extremely early departure on Saturday morning.
Final thoughts from members of our group will be posted tomorrow.

DAY 4

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Today our group spent the morning at two different work sites.
At one site, Fiona, Ella, Brian, Blake and Tom worked with a woman named Debra who, along with her mother and her brother, had been evacuated to Houston. While there, Debra’s mother died and her brother had to have both legs amputated. Debra is now in the process of restoring her brother’s house and making it handicapped accessible. Our group members scraped and sanded the front porch and cleaned garage doors in preparation for painting.
At the other site, Nora, Lousia, Sofia, Terry and Steve helped clean up an overgrown yard and power washed a fence. They also saw a Mardi Gras costume that was being hand-beaded and elaborately decorated with feathers and sequins for a girl named Dynasty, the daughter of Lucius, the home owner, who was in the process of restoring the property.
After a very rushed lunch (we were running late), we were given a tour of the city. This helped us to better understand what happened during the flood and its aftermath. We ended the tour in the French Quarter where we were able to spend more time than we had previously been able to. In the evening, we went to our second Mardi Gras parade.
Today was a long day for all of us, but our group is still working together like champions, supporting, encouraging, and helping one another.
Here are a few photos of our fourth day here in New Orleans as well as a thought or two about the day from each member of our group:
Louisa Carman – Winn Dixie was awesome.
Nora Randolph – I had ice cream and macaroni and cheese for dinner.
Sofia Kasem-Samarn – I was able to bargain for a better price for a handbag in the French Quarter.
Bryan Hutchinson – I got to try red beans and rice for the first time.
Blake Atwood – Shopping was fun. Catching beads at the parade while sitting on a window sill five feet over the sidewalk and fifty feet from parade was awesome.
Fiona Brown – Ella and I entertained the crowd with “light saber” sword fights while everyone waited for the parade to begin.
Ella Formel – We included a little kid in our awesome sword fights. I named my new alligator head “Franklin.”
Terry Wise – The highlight of my day was seeing Dynasty’s amazing “Indian” Mardi Gras costume.
Tom Damrosch – My favorite moment of the day was seeing Ella share her beads with a person who was injured. She brightened his day, and inspired all who witnessed it.
Steve Bridges – Today Lucius taught me how to use a power washer to clean a fence. That’s a useful skill!

DAY 3

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:11:30 -0500

Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Today we worked at the home of a woman named Ingrid who shared her story with us before, during and after we worked removing debris from under and around her home. She described how she and her brother had been blessed with a stable home and loving parents. She said that they had gone to the best schools, had good jobs, and always had everything they wanted or needed. She had lived in the same house for her entire life and had worked as a teacher for over thirty years. During the flood, some of her former students called her from the roof of the school to say goodbye. She does not know what happened to them.
Her brother, who lived with her, had become very sick with cancer before Katrina. Ingrid and her brother evacuated just before the storm hit, thinking – as did many others – that they would only be away for a few days at the most. However, they ended up in South Carolina for over a year where her brother died. She promised him, on his deathbed, that she would return to restore the house they had both grown up in; and that she would have him buried back in New Orleans. It has been a huge struggle for Ingrid, but she kept her promises to her brother. In fact, if not for the promises she made to her brother, she may not have returned to the house. She spent months living in her truck in the driveway and two years (almost to the day) in a FEMA trailer.
Ingrid is back in the house now but life is still very difficult. Like many teachers, she lost her job when the school was destroyed by the flood and not reopened. Her home is one of the very few in her neighborhood that have been restored. Her church – to which she is very devoted – went from 120 regular participants to about 15 and now has no settled pastor or music leader. Before the storm she had no debt whatsoever. Now she is heavily in debt. And on top of all that, her beloved pet dog died before she could resettle in her home.
Ingrid could not say enough about how much difference volunteers like us have made for her and others. Her house is now very nice inside. We helped clean up debris from under the house and around the yard.
Afterwards, we drove out to Laura Plantation to learn a little about Creole history. Then we returned to the church and took the streetcar into the French Quarter for a quick visit before dinner.
Here are a few photos of our third day here in New Orleans as well as a thought or two about the day from each member of our group:
Blake Atwood –I enjoyed hearing Ingrid’s stories.
Bryan Hutchinson – I like the French Quarter and wish we could spend more time there. (We will!)
Fiona Brown – I thought it was cool how a person who lost everything could still be so upbeat and positive.
Ella Formel – I enjoyed catching beads tossed to us from a balcony in the French Quarter.
Sofia Kasem-Samarn – It was rewarding to see the smile on the face of someone whom we were able to help.
Nora Randolph – I had been undervaluing the work we do. Hearing how much difference it makes to people was encouraging.
Louisa Carman – Today I felt like we were really making a difference and helping people recover.
Terry Wise – It was great to see our whole group gathered in a circle on the floor of Ingrid’s kitchen looking at her pictures and hearing her story.
Tom Damrosch – I loved the framed saying on the wall of Ingrid’s home, “Faith makes things possible, not easy.”
Steve Bridges – Ingrid is an inspiration to us. We are honored to be held in such high esteem by her.

DAY 2

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Monday, February 16, 2009
The group from Seekonk arrived late last night in their rental vehicle instead of a cab. So they did not need an early-morning ride to the airport! We shared a meal with them at the church tonight and plan to do so again tomorrow night.
Our group spent most of the day at Belle Reve, which is an assisted living facility for people with HIV/AIDS. We sorted and moved old furniture and supplies and cleaned out a huge storage area in the process. We also moved some new furniture (still in huge, heavy boxes) from one building to another and up to the second floor. Nora and Lousia power washed a porch and lawn furniture. One of the residents insisted on baking us a cake, which we shared with residents and staff at the end of the day. While we shared a break and a snack, staff members from Belle Reve spoke about how much help our efforts had been to them and how much volunteer workers continue to mean for New Orleans in general.
We then spent some time at a couple of wonderful second-hand thrift stores in the neighborhood with plenty of cool Mardi Gras and New Orleans stuff. Terry claims to have procured costumes for the entire high school musical back home! Afterwards, we went to the French Quarter for a little exploring and shopping.
Here are a few photos of our second day here in New Orleans as well as a thought or two about the day from each member of our group:
Fiona Brown – New Orleans is wicked chill!
Ella Formel – I love the French Quarter and studded amazingness that are the new boots I found there.
Sofia Kasem-Samarn – I enjoyed helping move furniture and shopping for candy in the French Quarter.
Nora Randolph – My favorite part of the day was sitting at Café du Monde enjoying café au lait and a beignet while watching a beautiful sky and listening to excellent street musicians.
Louisa Carman – Carrying the futon frame through the streets to its new home was fun. Carrying in down a narrow ally and into a back yard was a challenge to remember! We had to do the “futon limbo” to squeeze past an air conditioner.
Blake Atwood – I really liked the little neighborhoods with one-way streets and colorful houses. I also enjoyed meeting - and working with – Harry, one of the residents at Belle Reve.
Bryan Hutchinson – The French Quarter was the coolest part of the day. Helping to move furniture was good too.
Terry Wise – We really bonded with the people we worked with today. By the end of our time together, we were exchanging contact information and posing for group photos.
Tom Damrosch – Our group really made a difference for Belle Reve today. I was especially impressed by the “Bryan and Blake moving company.”
Steve Bridges – Our group did some impressive work today and had the invaluable experience of being appreciated for volunteering to help folks who needed a hand.

DAY 1

Sun, 15 Feb 2009 07:59:07 -0500

Sunday, February 15, 2009
After a long day of travel, we arrived at St. Matthew’s Church here in New Orleans at about 11:00 pm last night. We are staying in bunkrooms at the church. This morning, after a quick and simple breakfast at the church, we attended the worship service where we saw several people whom we (or others from Stockbridge) had met on previous trips. We also saw Ted Hornick, who grew up going to church in Stockbridge and who now lives and works in New Orleans. After a lunch of sandwiches and pizza, we went to a Mardi Gras parade where we all had a great time and collected many beads. Then it was back to the church to finish setting in. This included our first grocery-shopping trip and a trip back out to the airport due to a slight complication with one of our rental vehicles.
Another group from Seekonk, Massachusetts will arrive here late tonight to stay here at the church and to do volunteer work in New Orleans. They have experienced a flight delay and will not arrive until after midnight. We have agreed to stay up late to let them into the building and show them around. (They will probably need a ride back to the airport tomorrow to pick up their rental cars since the car rental agencies will be closed by the time they get in and they will have to take a cabs to get here.) We will be able to help them out with that and may also share a meal or two with them since we will be sharing the same bunkrooms, kitchen, lounge area, and bathrooms.
As for our group, we start work tomorrow morning!
Here are a few photos of our first day here in New Orleans as well as a thought or two about the day from each member of our group:
Nora Randolph – The canopy of live oaks over the streets are very impressive.
Louisa Carman – I like walking through the city in the gorgeous weather!
Blake Atwood – I like how everyone here is so enthusiastic about Mardi Gras
Bryan Hutchinson – I like colleting beads and sharing them with my friends.
Fiona Brown – I like riding tricycles and playing castle.
Ella Formel – I like how everybody gets along.
Sofia Kasem-Samarn – The weather makes me feel like I’m at home in Thailand … and I loved the parade.
Terry Wise – I am enjoying the warm spring-like weather.
Tom Damrosch – I am impressed by the diversity of New Orleans and by Ella’s unique and courageous approach to problem solving.
Steve Bridges – Every member or our group is making an extra effort to be supportive of and helpful to every other member of the group. Awesome!