Whatever Strikes Me

The camp was our home away from home for the week. It appears that it is a converted school field house. The building is divided into a kitchen, dining area, living area with couches and entertainment devices, men’s and women’s bunk areas, and six-unit shower/sink areas, each for men and women. Showers are small units that have just enough room in which you can turn around. There also are men’s and women’s restrooms that are part of the original structure. They each contain a shower, in addition to toilet facilities. There are also a couple of storage rooms.

The bunk areas consist of a bunch of bunk beds constructed of bare-wood 2×4s. Mattresses are standard college-dorm twin-sized units with plastic covers over them. While we were there, there was also a group from Florida, made up partially of children who were basically too young for this kind of mission work. No matter how many times they were asked to pick up their stuff, it didn’t happen and much of the men’s dorm was a mess throughout the week. If there was a negative aspect of the the trip, the children (boys) and their messes were it and that was easily tolerated.

The living areas are kept very clean, with each group taking turns throughout the week to perform cleaning duties. Work shoes are placed on racks at the entrance to keep dirt to a minimum. Though it wasn’t home, I never felt like I was living in dirt. However, with the number of kids in the place, the main restroom, the only toilets in the building, got kind of messy, so I found myself using the facilities in the trailer next door as it was cleaner and more private.

The rest of the camp area consists of trailers of various kinds, a gazebo, and a pond. The compound is surrounded by a high chain-link fence, topped with razor wire. The gates were only open during the daytime. Otherwise, they are chained and locked. As you enter the compound, there is a rather large lot that has camping trailers (reason for the trailers not known), and some storage trailers. Straight ahead from the entrance is the pond and large gazebo. You wrap around the main building and see a lawn area on the left, with the main building on your right.

Ahead, at the opposite end of the grounds is more parking for vans, trailers, etc., and a bunch of semi-tractor-trailer-sized trailers. Those trailers contain living supplies for the workers, building supplies, and a vast array of tools, donated by tool manufacturers. At the end of the main building, opposite the entrance, is a laundry building and the external trailer that houses more toilets and sinks.

The camp manager’s name is Katie. She migrated from Wisconsin to do this work through the Lutheran Relief program. She lives in a trailer on the grounds with her two dogs, a great dane named Bailey, and a young puppy, whose name I can’t remember. Katie runs a tight ship and is a self-admitted control freak, but she has the best intentions in mind for all and wants the facilities to be a good place to stay after a hot, dirty day working on homes. Though she ruffled a feather or two at times, she has a tough job to do and the only way to keep any kind of order is by following a set of rules and procedures. The week we were there she was dealing with the added hassle of young kids, many poorly supervised, so I’m sure she was on edge.

Katie has been on duty for most of the three years since the Katrina storm and brought tears to my eyes several times with the stories she tells about the New Orleans people and what they have been through. It’s clear that we cannot ever comprehend what has transpired as a result of the storm and floods.

Katie held a devotion during breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was at 7:00 and consisted of cold cereal, fruit, muffins, toast, and the usual breakfast beverages. It was during breakfast that we also made our lunches for the day. Devotion was at 7:15 and by the time Katie was done with devotions, most were done with breakfast and off to load up vehicles for the day’s work.

Loading vehicles consisted of people, gear, lunches, and the all-important coolers full of ice and bottled water. All groups were usually gone before 8:00 a.m.

Dinner was at 6:00 sharp and we were expected to be there on time. The food was superb, nothing like the school cafeteria slop you would expect. Basically we ate like kings. The lady who prepared each dinner was an accomplished chef and dinner was a highlight of the day.

It wasn’t long after dinner before most people started heading to bed. The main lights in the building went off at 8:00 and the lights in the living area at 9:00. I’m one who goes to bed late and was always the last to bed. By 10:30, I was almost always alone. The heat and hard work wore people out. It wore me out, too, but I simply can’t go to sleep that early in the evening.

To do this kind of mission work, I don’t think you could have better facilities in which to live. The camp was well run, safe, and comfortable. If you want to support the work in New Orleans, I’m sure contributions would be more than welcome. In formation for contributions can be found at this address: http://www.lsss.org/helping/huricanerelief05.htm

Here are some photos of the compound.

Gary

This is the main building, looking back toward the gazebo and entrance. The small building in the foreground is the laundry facility.

This is the external restroom/sink trailer for both men and women.

One of our vans/trailers. Toilet trailer on the other side of the van, with the main building in the background.

A view of the surrounding neighborhood through the fence that surrounds the camp.

These are the trailers in the back of the grounds in which supplies and tools are stored. Foreground is the lawn area for play, picnics, etc.

The camp pond has a walkway around it and is populated with geese, ducks, turtles, and other aquatic life. Old bread is always available to feed the animals.

The gazebo is a place for eating and relaxing if you enjoy hot, humid air. The Florida people, who were frequently too cold in the main building, often had their evening meeting in the gazebo. Us cold-blooded Illinois people chose the air conditioning.

The men’s bunk room in one of its neater moments. I assume that the women’s room was similar, but cleaner.

This is the living/dining area. You can see the kitchen in the background.

Some wall art left by a previous group. The walls in the hallways surrounding the bunk rooms are covered with these displays.

Some wall art left by a previous group. The walls in the hallways surrounding the bunk rooms are covered with these displays.

This wall art was left by our own Linda Burmeister and her family/team when they visited in 2007.

It’s our last day in New Orleans and somebody turned up the humidity over night. We were in full sweat by the time we had the trailers unloaded. The women stayed back at the camp to fulfill our group’s cleaning duties. Each group takes a turn throughout the week. It’s only an hour of time. I commented to one of the women that it was a little sexist to just have the women do the cleaning and she said, “we’re realistic. The projects that the men are working on (kitchen, bathrooms) require the most time.” But we messed up and took the wrong trailer. The trailer we had was full of donated furniture for Julie. The trailer the women had contained the tools. Hey, we’re tired!

With Mark’s “help,” Art dug into the kitchen. The kitchen floor has very nice ceramic tile that survived the flood and Julie wanted to keep it. It’s in beautiful shape, but there is no tile where cabinets once were and the new cabinets do not fit into the same “slots.” So Art has had to modify many of the floor pieces to get the tops all level for the counters. The new cabinets we purchased the other day, surprisingly, were taller than the standard counter height, so Art had to cut each one down. All of this has delayed the project, but Art’s amazing skills are winning the day. By late afternoon, the counter tops were installed and the sink was being put into place. I left late afternoon to fly home, but am confident the kitchen was finished shortly after my departure.

By mid afternoon, toilets were seated and the plumbing was getting hooked up. Doug, who has been handling the bathroom fixture installations had the tub surrounds in and was caulking the edges. Julie’s “FEMA castle” has a shower that is just big enough to turn around in. She mentioned the other day that she looks forward to being able to take a bath in the bathtub and just relax. I’m confident that will happen this weekend. It’s the little things that make a huge difference.

Don spent a better part of the day installing hardware on the interior doors. John did the woodwork in the archway and was going to try to get folding doors hung. We also bought flooring for the master bedroom and hoped to get that installed.

Julie, Cathy, Christi, Sue, Elizabeth, and others tackled the yard again, giving it a thorough raking, removing vines and branches from the back fence, and making it look more like a yard than a post-flood mess. It’s interesting that, three years later, very little is growing in the back yard. Virtually all of the plant life is essentially dead. It’ll be interesting to see if the air that gets to the soil after the raking starts to generate new life.

Flowers also got planted in the front of the house and a couple of planters hung. As Christi said, “the outside just needs a little color.” The green and the flower color make a difference.

Christi had been planning some window treatments for the past couple of days and Elizabeth and I were enlisted to hang rods. Julie has some beautiful drapes that she’s been waiting to use and they look nice hung on the windows. Elizabeth, who is getting married soon, now is an experienced curtain rod hanger, so there’s no reason her new home in California won’t be adorned with fine window treatments. Using the screwdriver to hang rods, Elizabeth developed a crippling blister about 1/8 in. in diameter on her right hand. Consideration was given to taking her to the emergency room, but it was decided she would be OK if she didn’t use the hand for about a month.

We had our last carport lunch this afternoon and Elizabeth led us in a very nice house blessing ceremony in the den. Linda presented Julie with a prayer shawl, we prayed for her and she for us, and tears were shed.

We then went back outside for a group photo and got it in just ahead of a storm. When the rain finally cut loose, we got an old-fashioned southern thunderstorm with a lengthy deluge of rain. All of the cleaned windows are now not so clean.

The Ice Cream Man situation reached comic levels today. A renegade mercenary showed up this morning, no doubt looking to move in on Ice Cream Man’s territory. Elizabeth, in a Christian way, told him to get lost. Then Ice Cream Man showed up just before lunch. He was “done with his route early.” Elizabeth, our self-appointed Ice Cream Man liaison (she speaks the language), indicated that he was too early and might return around 2:00. He returned at the appointed hour, in the middle of the rainstorm. Most braved the storm to make their purchases. I’m going to miss those afternoon ice cream sandwiches.

At 4:30, I regretfully left for the airport. I felt bad leaving everyone to finish up and wish I had decided to stay around and finish with the group. I feel like I abandoned them, but have to admit that my own bed will feel good tonight. The group is planning a 4:00 a.m. departure for Illinois Saturday. It’ll be a long drive to get them home Saturday evening.

For my part, it was a distinct privilege to be able to spend the week in New Orleans helping put Julie in a position to move back into her home after three years in that trailer. Yes, Julie reaped the material benefit of our efforts, but we were the real winners in this mission because we got to do what the Bible teaches us and make a difference for someone in need without any expectation or desire for return. We got to be God’s hands and take care of one of his children. There is no better feeling than that.

Here are photos from the day’s activities. Some extra ones from the last day. Christi said she would take photos after everything is cleaned up so check back in a few days to see those.

Gary

View of the back of the house. The extension on the right is the family room/den. The sheet metal box on the back of the wall is the water heater housing. The open door on the left is the entry to the master bedroom. It’s worth noting that the air conditioner survived the flood and does work. Julie says, “I don’t know how long it will work, but it works now.” There is no doubt it will have to be replaced.

View of the front, south end. Can’t get a shot of the entire front because the FEMA Castle is in the way.

Arch before John started working on it. The arch connects the dining/living room with the family room/den. View is into the den.

Cathy sands the finished arch.

Debbie cleans the outside of the bay windows. A couple of hours later the thunderstorm would take care of that glistening glass. John’s saw station is in the background.

Cathy strikes a pose while raking the backyard. Note how dead all of the vegetation looks.

Elizabeth bustin’ sod so flowers can be planted in front of the house.

Sue and Elizabeth planting the flowers and discussing weddings. Though I didn’t catch all of the conversation, Sue got rather animated at one point and I heard “Bill,” “his friends,” and something about behavior at the reception, though I didn’t catch enough detail to put the story together.

Doug hookin’ up the crapper.

Don installed hardware on all of the interior doors and adjusted them so they’d close properly.

Linda cleaning the same window she cleaned yesterday. Seemed to be a strange fascination with that one window. At least she’s not walking around with that mask on the side of her face. I was starting to get embarrassed for her.

Mark “helps” Art in the kitchen. Art told me later that he got more done in the 15 min. Mark was asleep than he had in the previous day and a half of Mark actually involving himself in the project. But don’t tell Mark. He thinks he actually made a difference in the kitchen and we don’t want to burst his little bubble. He’s very sensitive.

The first countertop.

Countertops installed, Art drops in the kitchen sink. Shhhh, Mark’s still sleeping.

Window treatment in the master bedroom.

Our last carport lunch. That is one hot and tired group of people filled with the joy of “doing unto others.”

Elizabeth leads us in the house blessing ceremony in the den.

Linda presents Julie with a prayer shawl representing “all of the prayers that have gone into making this possible.”

The group that converted Julie’s house from studwork to a home in five days (l-r back row): Mary Long, Don Long, Ed Burns, Doug Naatz, Mark Petersdorff, Julie Newman, Cliff Beck, Linda Burmeister, Art Osburn, Dennis Burmeister, John May, Gary Parr. Front row, l-r: Debbie Beck, Sue Stroup, Cathy Johnson, Elizabeth Hones, Christi Osburn. Not shown: Anna Martell, who flew home Thursday, and the hundreds, and maybe thousands, who prayed for us and for Julie and donated money, supplies, and furniture. If you look closely you’ll see the Lord’s presence in all of this.

We not only moved a mountain today, we shoved it down the road. I’m writing this at 11:00 p.m. because we didn’t get back from our evening session at Julie’s until 10:00 and I smelled so bad that even the camp pet dogs went running in the opposite direction, tails tucked firmly between their legs.

The determination that drove all of us today was incredible, as were the results. The last pieces of rock were hung and the scraps hauled back to camp for disposal. No more screw guns, T-squares, box cutters, measuring for receptacles, drywall mud, sanding, priming . . .

The remaining kitchen cabinet pieces were located at Lowe’s and, by the time we left tonight, there were only two or three pieces remaining to be installed. They go in in the morning and it’ll be off to Home Depot for countertops.

Today’s other accomplishments:

• The interior of the entire house is now painted.
• Wood framing has been installed around all windows
• Vanities and tub surrounds are installed in the bathrooms
• Faucet and shower fixtures were installed and water runs again for the first time in three years in the tubs and will run again in the sinks tomorrow.
• Half of the interior doors have been installed.
• The window frames and glass were cleaned for the first time in three years and the light beamed through them.
• The yard has been raked and all debris left from the flood picked up and put on the curb for pickup.
• There is shelving in the master bedroom closet.
• We started installing electrical receptacles and switches.

We’ll have another busy day tomorrow, our last day in New Orleans, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel and we’re traveling at high speed to get there.

Yes, the Ice Cream Man cometh again today, but this time he got his greed under control and only showed up once. He had no trouble making multiple sales. He’s been a friendly bright spot each day and that ice cream is sooo good and sooo much better in the New Orleans heat.

We did break today to return to camp for a special dinner of blackened catfish covered in shrimp creole, red potatoes, vegetables, and pecan pie. I don’t like catfish, but ate it tonight and it was excellent. I don’t like pecan pie, but ate it tonight and did not leave one crumb. It was superb.

Sleep will come rapidly tonight and we’ll keep shoving that mountain tomorrow. That FEMA trailer’s days are numbered.

Here are some photos from the day. Oops, fell asleep at the computer last night and had to go to bed. Photos coming up this morning.

Gary

The framed bay window will give a nice view to the back yard.

The cabinetry is starting to take shape.

The windows are all framed. Julie is going to clear coat them.

Roll that primer, Christi! The clock is ticking.

Bathroom vanity #1 installed.

The ever-gleeful Elizabeth painting the kitchen.

Linda slaps those windows into shape.

Cathy and Dennis looking over the plans for the archway.

The mud dried and the morning was a flurry of drywall activity. The rest of the drywall got hung by noon, amidst an absolute perpetual cloud of drywall dust as all available hands were masked and doing a final sand. By noon I caught the first whiffs of primer paint.

We thought we were done hanging drywall, but there is a storage room of the carport that we forgot about. It had to be insulated, so Julie made an insulation run, suited up in her insulator clothes and I fed her lengths to install. She got the room insulated and we started hanging the rock, as they say. It got extremely hot in the afternoon, especially in that small, now insulated room, and I ran out of gas. So the rest of the rock will be hung (cool how I’ve learned the lingo, isn’t it?) in the morning.

Art got started on the kitchen and worked into the evening hanging cabinets. It’s starting to look like a real kitchen. We need some additional cabinetry and hope to buy that tomorrow. Julie has all needed appliances and we made an unsuccessful shopping trip for a dishwasher that Anna Martell wants to give to Julie. Apparently dishwashers are a rare commodity in New Orleans. We’ll find one tomorrow.

A group stayed late tonight and the master bedroom, the hallway, and part of the dining/living room got painted. We should be able to paint the bathrooms in the morning and, depending on the mudding situation, get started on the other rooms. We should have no problem getting all of the rooms painted by the time we quit Friday.

The treat of the day came when Julie bought lunch for us from a local seafood restaurant. We chose what we wanted from the menu and when the food got distributed things suddenly got quiet and stayed that way, other than several proclamations of tasty food. Julie also bought a mess of crawfish which, if you enjoy them, was a real treat. Many tried them for the first time with mixed results. I felt bad for Julie. I think she was counting on us crowding around the pile of crawfish and digging in until they were gone. But we had no trouble making all of the other food disappear and people had to force themselves out of the chairs and back to work. A nap was in order, but not to be.

Julie had to take a lengthy break from working on the house to kill a wasp/hornet nest in her palm tree. Several palm fronds were sacrificed in the effort.

Dennis, Elizabeth, and Ed power-washed about two thirds of the house today. It was a much needed facelift.

I know you’re wondering and yes, the Ice Cream Man cometh again. But this time greed got the best of him and he showed up in the morning, right after our coffee break. There was absolutely no interest in ice cream and he went away empty handed. But the greed factor was still in play and he returned this afternoon to a warm reception and many sales. At $4/gal., the extra trip probably cost him his profits from the run. Greed is not a pretty animal.

Here are photos from the day.

Gary

Lunch was on Julie and included an impressive pile of crawfish.

Elizabeth likes them little critters.

John enjoyed his crawfish in a different way.

Come on, Ed, roll faster!!

Cliff Beck slinging mud in the family room.

Don Long slinging mud in the office. He’s intense!

Doug shows us that he paid attention during Ed’s heat safety seminar.

No one is quite sure why Linda insists on wearing her dust mask on the side of her face. She had training, like the rest of us, but can’t seem to grasp the concept.

Ed is so versatile. He muds, sands, paints, and now power washes. Ed is available for handyman jobs at your home. Call him at 555-HANDY.

Cathy is so tired that giddiness has set in.

It’s starting to look like a kitchen. Go Art, go!

Art and Julie about to enjoy spaghetti at the end of a long, hot day.

We start out the day on a sad note. Yesterday, Art and Christi Osburn got a call from the kennel telling them that their dog was quite sick and needed to go to the vet. After some tests, it was determined late last night that nothing could be done and the Osburn’s had to make the decision to end the dog’s life on earth. If you’ve ever lost a family pet, you know that it’s not easy. They are part of the family. When they return home, they’ll have the difficult task of explaining to their 5-yr.-old daughter why her dog isn’t returning, too. We will pray for them this morning.

It rained heavily last night, which will add to the steam factor of the day. Drywalling, more mudding, and more sanding lie ahead. But breakfast is first.

It’s now evening and I’ll no longer be relying on the person who reported all-night rain. Next time I’ll check for myself. It didn’t rain a drop all night. It was a hot day, but the humidity dropped noticeably as the day went on.

We worked like dogs all day today, from our 8:00 arrival until we left at 5:00. There was a clear determination among the group to get the drywall hung and move the mudding process toward completion. As a result, we made a ton of progress. We have just a few small pieces of drywall to hang tomorrow and many of the rooms are ready for final finishing and then priming. The holdup will be the humidity. Much of the mud that should have dried overnight was still quite damp and not accepting a second coat. There is potential that we’ll have a lot of idle time Wednesday as we wait for mud to dry. We have fans blowing all over the house, but can’t leave the windows open overnight because we can’t risk vandals/thieves entering the house looking for valuables to steal. The lower humidity will be a big help.

We also discovered that, as we closed rooms in, the heat in the house increased, especially since all outside walls and the ceilings are now insulated. When we took breaks from hanging drywall, and went outside, it felt like we had entered air conditioning. Today, we used rags soaked in ice water around our necks to keep our bodies cool. One group also stopped at the grocery store this morning and purchased Gatorade, which helped a lot (Yes IT was in us). Some beverages called Beck’s and Bud Light fell off of the shelf and into their cart, without their knowledge. Those beverages were sampled at the end of the day and seemed to be well received.

I know you’re all wondering, and yes, about 2:00 in the afternoon, at just the right moment, the Ice Cream Man cometh! Even if Julie’s neighborhood wasn’t on his Tuesday route, we were all sure he’d have driven across town to sell us more ice cream. And you can bet your boots we bought it, too. Ice cream for everyone! Good ole American capitalism lives in New Orleans!!

After cleanup and showers, we enjoyed another excellent meal back at camp. The chef they have cooking dinner is a good one. The group then ventured out to the French Quarter to see the sites and hear the sounds. I stayed behind to work on my paying job duties. They promised that, as good Christians, they would stay out of the strip joints.

We all appreciate the prayers and words of support that have come to us. It’s hard work, but we’re making a difference for a terrific individual who couldn’t appreciate our efforts more. In your prayers, throw in a request for dry mud when we arrive in the morning.

Here are photos from the day.

Gary

The bay window structure was opened up, is now insulated, and a new top and window seat will be installed.

Strange things happen to studs that sit for a month or more in 4 to 6 ft. of nasty flood water. Nothing is close to plumb and badly warped and twisted studs are the norm. Many drywall screws have been inserted where studs should be, only to find air.

Art and Mark inspect unusual beverages that fell from the shelf to the cart when they were buying Gatorade this morning. Mark seems excited.

Debbie Beck demonstrates her mudding skills.

Mark Petersdorff in position to hang another piece of drywall on the ceiling.

John May and Cathy Johnson put the final coat of mud on the kitchen walls. We need to paint and hang cabinets on Wednesday if we want the kitchen done by Friday.

Ed Burns demonstrates the importance of drinking water in his heat safety demonstration. Actually, I just caught Ed with a bottle of water in his hands and photographed him.

Dennis Burmeister stays cool with an ice-water-soaked rag as he hangs drywall. I would suggest that he needs deodorant, but I couldn’t tell because my body odor was masking his.

Likely not Anna Martell’s most attractive facial expression.

Lunchtime in the carport. We each pack a lunch each morning. Sandwiches, carrots, chips, pudding, and granola bars are options.

The work has begun, though we’re off to a slow start. Drywall mud is being cleaned up and smoothed out and the drywall around the windows fixed so it will accommodate the wood framing. The biggest project this morning was determining what building materials were needed to do the job. After the list was made, a party of three departed, with a trailer, to reduce the inventory at Home Depot. The biggest purchase will be drywall, and a lot of it. That’s followed by doors, flooring, and insulation. It’s lunch time as I write this and the action has ground to a standstill. Things will fly when the Home Depot shipment arrives. It’s likely we’ll now work into the night to gain some momentum.

It’s hot and humid and we are focused on drinking a lot of water. This is the camp water shed where we load coolers with bottled water and fill them with ice. We’re instructed to drink at least six bottles a day.

The crew gets ready to head to Julie’s for a day’s work.

Don and Mary Long finish up some insulation in the living room.

Before deciding what to buy at Home Depot, some of the crew studies photos Julie took before the hurricane for insurance purposes. We’re trying to get things close to the way they were and, obviously, how Julie wants them.

While waiting for the load of material from Home Depot to arrive, we heard music over a loudspeaker and it was coming our way! Yes, it was the Ice Cream Man!! We waved him down and, no doubt, made his biggest sale of the day. Elizabeth Hones had never heard of the Ice Cream Man and anxiously awaits his return tomorrow, and you know he’ll be back.

Shortly after the ice cream was gone the trailer arrived full of $2,400 worth of drywall, drywall mud, doors, primer, and other construction goodies. One of the hardest jobs of the day was unloading that trailer. They bought 4 x 12-ft. sheets of drywall. They come in bundles of two sheets. We broke the bundles apart and moved them into the house one sheet at a time. It was simply too hot, too humid, and the drywall too heavy to move them two sheets at a time. Once we got the drywall off of the trailer, we took a long break.

While the shoppers were at Home Depot, the rest of us worked hard to clean up and smooth out the drywall mud that Julie and her brother had applied. They were learning as they did it and, if you’ve ever tried mudding drywall, it takes a little practice to get it right. Our drywall pros showed us what to do and by the time the trailer arrived, all of the drywall mud was looking pretty good and will be ready for a final coat tomorrow.

After the trailer arrived and our break ended, the drywalling began. By the end of the day the front living room, that was just insulated walls yesterday, was drywalled and had its first coat of mud. John wants to replace a couple of existing drywall areas tomorrow. After that, the mudding will be finished and the room made ready for primer. We also started drywalling the two remaining bedrooms after a group installed insulation in the ceiling. Those last two rooms will be completed in the morning and mud applied throughout the day.

Virtually all day, Art and Christi Osburn worked on the kitchen walls. By the end of the day, the walls were drying and ready for the final coat of mud tomorrow, then a primer coat. Art is pushing hard in the kitchen, because it’s the most involved project, with cabinets, an island, countertops, and appliances yet to be installed.

We worked until almost 7:30, when it simply got too dark in the hosue (no electricity yet) and we all just ran out of gas. Tomorrow we’ll move major mountains and should be able to get close to the painting phase. It was a good day despite the heat and the only injuries of any consequence were three or four wasps that will no longer be making low-level passes through the house. With all of the open/abandoned homes, wasps, hornets, and bees have plenty of nesting places and are getting to be a problem.

We’ll sleep well tonight because we’re exhausted and because we did a lot of good today.

Gary

Cathy Johnson makes the master Home Depot shopping list. It’s a long list and another trailer load will be purchased tomorrow.

Mud-Master Art Osburn getting the kitchen ready to be painted.

The Ice Cream Man was a cool spot in a hot, muggy day. That was goooood eatin’!

The first load from Home Depot. Unloading all of those 12-ft.-long sheets of drywall exhausted all of us.

Doug Naatz was Mud-Master II all day today. If he looks hot, it’s because he was. It was one sweltering day.

Sue Stroup slung her share of mud today. Here she is working on the bathroom wall. A fan is blowing on her to give her more of a fashion-model effect. I don’t think she cared how she looked.

After a decent night’s sleep and a hot breakfast, with grits for some (yuk!), we were on the road at 8:00 a.m. for the final 6-hr. leg of our journey to New Orleans. Geez I need a shower. It’s warm and muggy as it so often is in this part of the country. The only car trouble we’ve had is a minor leak in the AC system of one of the vans. We have a can of freon and topped it off this morning. We pray that that’s all we encounter. The vans are simply guzzling gas hauling those full trailers. We are so blessed that plenty of money was donated to pay for fuel.

It’s a warm, hazy day as we load up our gear for the final leg of the trip to New Orleans. We’re each allowed a large garbage bag for sleeping bags, air mattresses, etc. Each of us was issued a gray tub to hold all of our clothes and other belongings for the week. We were not charged $15 to check either our garbage bag or our tub!

We arrived at the “camp,” a converted school gym at 4:00 p.m. Our leader/organizer, Linda Burmeister, has done a superb job of keeping us on schedule. We were all more than glad to be done with the traveling part. The facilities are much nicer than I expected, all things considered. We’ll sleep on 2×4-framed bunks tonight, on twin mattresses, which will be better than the cot and sleeping bag arrangement from last night. I didn’t get along very well with the cot. There will be some 60 volunteers here this week–a group from Florida, another group from Ohio, and us. Katie, our camp manager is well organized and runs a tight ship. We have to be up and ready for breakfast at 7:00 a.m., make our own lunches, and make sure we take plenty of water with us for the day.

One aisle of the men’s bunk room. I don’t know how many beds there are, but it’s a lot.

Here’s where we eat, watch TV, play card games, and work on blogs.

Groups are welcome to decorate the walls of the camp. Here’s one from a Wisconsin group.

After we got the trailers unloaded, we headed out to Julie’s house to see what work lies ahead for us and to go to dinner with her. I can assure you, FEMA trailers do not look like the kind of thing you want to live in for 3 years. Julie has done remarkable work on her house, when you consider it’s just been her, with occasional help from her brother, while she continues to work her full-time nursing job. Wiring and plumbing are in place and a good portion of the house is dry-walled. Nonetheless, there is a tremendous amount of work to be done. The biggest project looks to be putting the kitchen together while preserving the existing ceramic tile, one of the few things that survived the flooding. Tomorrow will begin what appears to be five intensive, hot, humid days as we work to get Julie back into her home.

Julie’s “FEMA castle.”

Christi Osburn, Linda Burmeister, and Julie discuss the matters at hand. Julie couldn’t have been more excited to see us.

John May, Mark Petersdorff, and Art Osburn (l-r), evaluate the work that lies ahead and how best to tackle it.

We’ll have no trouble finding walls in need of gypsum board.

Two cars and two vans towing 12-ft. trailers crammed with furniture, tools, and luggage departed at 6:45 a.m. for the 600-mile trip to Hernando, Mississippi. It’s sunny, dry, and cool in Illinois, but the heat and humidity will no doubt build through the day. The trip was kicked off with a prayer and the excitement was high as we head to New Orleans to get Julie back in her home.

We were only about 15 min. behind schedule when we dined at the Burger King in Mt. Vernon, IL. Fast food was the key so we could stay on schedule and get to Hernando, MS, where they are preparing dinner for us. Lots of muscle kinks needed to be worked out after 6 hours in cars, even though we stopped a couple of times along the way.

A little after 7:00 p.m. we arrived at the Hernando United Methodist Church, Hernando, MS, our lodging for the night. Dinner was ready and cots were available for everyone. I’m writing this a little after 9:00 p.m. and the men, except for two of us, have been asleep for 30 min. or so. As of 5 min. ago, I’m the only one awake. Couple of more hours before I cash it in. While the men were hitting the hay, the women were out taking a walk and could be heard socializing down the hall.

We’ll be up early in the morning for breakfast and then on the road for the final 6 hr. to New Orleans. No showers at the church in the morning, so we’ll be feeling funky until we get to New Orleans, where we’ll be able to wash off the grime of two days of traveling.

Gary

In my view, one of the more disgusting/embarrassing events in recent U.S. history is how our government has handled things in New Orleans in the almost 3+ years since Katrina ripped that city apart. It simply amazes me how we can send billions of dollars in aid to countries all over the world, but can’t take care of our own people. I can’t decide whether it’s because the current administration simply doesn’t care, because so many are poor and black, a combination, or maybe there’s some other factor.

Regardless, that’s what will be in my head as I set out Saturday morning, June 14, to make my small contribution to help those in need. This is something unlike anything I’ve ever done in my life. I’ll be traveling to the Crescent City with a group from my church as part of our congregation’s Julie’s Hope effort.

Julie’s Hope is named for Julie Newman, a nurse who worked in a New Orleans hospital during and after Katrina ravaged New Orleans. She was among the last to be evacuated and was placed in a YMCA camp in Algonquin, IL. Our church adopted her and has been supporting her efforts to get back into her New Orleans home.

Julie used her insurance payout to pay off her mortgage and “qualified” for $30,000 in government aid to help rebuild her home. That sounds great when you read it until I tell you that our government never allocated the actual funding. No other aid is available to her because, as Julie stated when she visited our church, “I’m too rich to be poor and too poor to be rich.”

As a result, she has worked since she returned to New Orleans to restore her gutted home. She lives in a FEMA trailer with the formaldehyde fumes you’ve read about. She said she has been using money from each paycheck to buy a few sheets of drywall, wire, pipe, whatever and working during her days off to rebuild her home. She told us she has learned to do things that she never thought she could do.

This is the second group of people our church has sent to work on Julie’s home. (June 21: I learned later this week that the first St. John’s contingent did not work on Julie’s home. They spent their time mucking out (gutting) another home that has since been torn down, and doing other cleanup projects. A church facility is going to be built on the lot.) This time our goal is, by next Friday, to have her home completed and have her moved in and out of that FEMA trailer. Church and community members have donated more than $5,000 in Home Depot cards, more than enough money to cover gas costs, a full set of kitchen cabinets, and several other pieces of furniture. We will arrive armed with tools, paint brushes, and a determination to finish her home next week.

This will be a new experience for me. I’m always willing to donate money, help with fundraisers, do whatever to help with causes such as this. But I’ve never actually gotten my hands dirty at the point of need. I don’t know what we’ll find when we get to New Orleans because all I know is what the media feeds us, which is rarely accurate. Check back throughout the week for updates on this outreach effort. If you are the type who believes in God and prayer, your prayers for our group and its efforts would be appreciated.

Gary