Rebuild, Renew, Re-New Orleans!

So I'm down here in New Orleans working with Rebuild America staying at CAMP HOPE, the largest volunteer housing camp in the U.S.! It is actually a middle school that was flooded during Hurricane Katrina.

It's about 350 or so college students here from all over helping to rebuild New Orleans, so it is kind of exciting meeting new people and seeing that there are young people who do care about NOLA (New Orleans Louisiana)

Before I cam here on Sunday, I really did not know what to expect. I was kind of disappointed I couldn't go on a cruise, a nice beach, or just relax at home. After all I signed up for this, so I felt obligated to keep this commitment. In my mind It seemed as though NOLA had done pretty well and had gotten back on its feet, considering not much has been said in the media to refute that thought.

However, as we got in NOLA, it was really sad. There are still complete neighborhoods that have yet to be re-built and businesses that have yet to be opened. We passed by a boarded up Wal-Mart Super center that was completely under water during Katrina, a Taco Bell in the same condition, and complete shopping centers that have yet to be re-opened.

And the saddest part was seeing all of the houses with huge X's marked on them, which let rescuers know which homes had been searched for survivors, as well as if there were any bodies in the homes. There is just so much to do here and not enough help. I really do not feel as though the media or our govt is giving enough attention to NOLA and the gulf coast in general. I just couldn't imagine going through what so many of these people and families have.

I'm from Florida, so I have experienced hurricanes before, but never do you think it could affect your home and your way of life so drastically. There was some 130,000 + people who could not evacuate, either due to their age, finances, or just ability to pack up and go on the fly. And what most people fail to know is that it wasn't the hurricane that destroyed NOLA, it was the levees that broke. When the hurricane hit it was a CAT 3, which the levees were supposedly built to withstand. And in some areas, it only hit as a CAT 1 or 2, and the levees still broke.

So for those who say that enough was done to protect NOLA from a hurricane are just wrong. IF you come here and actually meet the people who have experienced it and are here still today, you hear the truth, rather than some water downed version from governmental leaders and organizations. And contrary to what is shown on the media, it wasn't just BLACK people who were left behind, it was WHITE ppl as well, young and old. I feel like the media portrayed it as a BLACK problem, which is where I believe a lot of the comments that boarded as racist came from. You have ignorant people who go by what they only see on the news as their basis for judgment--such as the media focusing on individuals who were taking items for stores-food, electronics, shoes, etc..

These instances were small scale, considering the devastation that NOLA and the gulf coast experienced. Instead of using that as an excuse for your lack of understanding, education, research, and/or assistance, go see it for yourself and try to make a positive impact.

I have heard so many people who have argued for completely getting rid of NOLA and starting over. Well folks, it is not that easy. NOLA is an amazing, historic, and extremely important cultural jewel of America. People have lived here all their lives and have stories of generations before them. You just don't get up and leave your home because of something bad that has happened. IF everyone quit when the fight got tough, we would not be here today.

I am highly disappointed obviously at the slowness of our government to act. Billions of $$ are still tied up in a bureaucratic mess and just prolong the rehabilitation of NOLA and the gulf coast. However, we are able to spend some 13 Billion dollars a month in Iraq and send billions of $$ overseas every year helping with other natural disasters and projects. When we have major crisis in our OWN country, I feel as though that should be first priority over any other nation.

Being here in person, in flesh, I guess LIVE in a sense, has really opened my eyes to what is really going on in my own country. It's so easy to be at home watching CNN and saying "wow, that sucks" and seeing people dead, floating in 20 ft deep water in a street, or families holding "HELP ME" signs on massive roofs while helicopters fly past--YES, these are powerful images--but images only last for a while, whereas, seeing it first hand and really trying to make a difference, gives SEEING and BELIEVING a whole new meaning. Sometimes we feel powerless, that our we can't really make a difference, because the problem is so massive, but I PROMISE you, YOU can make a difference.

Donate to a charity that is dedicated to rebuilding NOLA, join AmeriCorps, come and volunteer for a week during the summer or during a break--all of these things will allow you to have some impact on helping create a sense of normalcy for so many families who lost everything and have only memories of the past to hold on to. Just imagine your home town, your city, your life being destroyed and uprooted for whatever reason. How would you want people to react? What would you expect from your friends, family, neighbors, government?

There is so much left to do and I think young people have the biggest opportunity to make that impact. While working at our home, which is owned by an elderly woman who goes to dialysis every morning and has been living in a mobile home by her house since Katrina, the older people who come to help seemed to be puzzled and amazed at the same time that young people would take their spring break off to come WORK for FREE!! Well, I think our generation is quite generous and I believe that we are very active with community service.

As I have met many, many other college students, including some fellow SIG EPs from DUKE Univ., I have witnessed a generation of young ppl that are just as enthusiastic about volunteering and giving back then just about any other generation. So I look forward for the challenge and I hope you do as well, and truly challenge our government to do more in this country for Americans. I feel as though our nation has truly lost that sense of togetherness and community and that is not a good thing. Live life to the fullest and view giving back as not just merely a way to waste time, but to truly make a difference in the lives of others.

Recover
Rebuild
Re-New Orleans

HOPE in NOLA!

In a time of struggle, strife, death, destruction, and despair, something has to stay inside of a person that drives them to keep going in the face of complete failure. When I look at the people I have met while in New Orleans, I have been amazed at the thought process and sense of commitment and drive that the people of New Orleans have. Even as they struggle to comprehend how a nation can leave them behind, they have so much fight still left in them. Even when they are saddened and disheartened at the world and conditions around them, they have not given up. When I look at my life and complain at such simplistic things and grudges, the issues and problems the people of NOLA have faced and face today over match any that I have in my life.

I could never imagine seeing my mother lie dead in her bed with my siblings as her oxygen ran out in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina or live on a roof for days waving clothing or anything I had as 15 feet of water was below me hoping that someone would come to my rescue. These are real lives--of people who overcame complete despair and hopelessness to save their families, their homes, and ultimately their lives. Everywhere we go in NOLA, people are so thankful of our service to rebuild their community, even as they reside in FEMA trailers as though Katrina was only a month ago. That through their anger and disdain for what they perceive as lack of help from their own government, they are not quitting and that alone gives me purpose and drive to continue to help them rebuild.

So what is it that drives these people to keep going? What kept them to keep going in the face of raging flood waters and demolished communities? One word that seems to ring true from all of the people I have met while in NOLA is simply: HOPE. What else could drive you, motivate you, push you, and keep you focused on something greater than yourself? When many residents packed up and left, thousands came back. Not because they were afraid to go anywhere else or were not able to go somewhere else--I mean after all, why come back to a place that is completely flooded and your home has been washed away along with your memories that you once held--But they came back because they had HOPE, that could rebuild a city, that the fight was just beginning, and that through the work of many they could slowly, but surely revive a community, a people, and show not only themselves, but a nation, that with tomorrow and the next day, they were here to stay!

I admire so greatly the families and people I have met while in NOLA and will never forget the impact that myself and other members of UT have provided to the people of New Orleans. It may only be one house, one person, but with that person many more will hear the story of HOPE and FULFILLMENT that we have provided, along with hundreds of other student volunteers. That in a time of darkness and despair, there can be light and positive change can flow just as those flood waters did years ago. It was an amazing and humbling experience as cars passed by and stopped in the middle of street just to wave or thank us for what were doing, or the construction workers in the next house over who were amazed that college students were taking their beloved spring break off to volunteer in a city that they had no connection in. Those are memories that will last with me that no other trip or adventure could have provided.

Lastly, this adventure in NOLA has really put into full effect my belief that as young people we can bring positive change in our communities and the world. We do not have to be just another stereotype or lost generation--but instead, we should be actively engaged in the world around us, fighting for what we stand for and believe in, voting, learning about what our leaders are doing, and truly working to make this country and the world a much better place to be. We only live this life once and I would challenge all young people to never forget that and to use that time to give back to those who are less fortunate and to live life not just for yourself, but for the success of others.