March 27, 2012
We
started early again today, waking up at 5:50 am so we could eat breakfast,
brush our teeth, pack our lunches, and be out of the Marquette House by
6:30. We returned to our two separate sites
and continue to sand and skim the walls, which aimed to make the walls as flat
and smooth as possible. Both groups met
the owners of the homes that we have been working on, and they were extremely
appreciative of our hard and dedicated work.
One of the owners spoke to the
whole group after our day of work. Her
name was Theresa, and she is an African American woman who has lived in New
Orleans for her entire life. Her house
had only one floor before the hurricane, and we could see just how high the
water had been by looking at the marks on the neighboring church. Theresa and her two kids left New Orleans
before the hurricane with her two children (one is a high school senior),
expecting to be back home after a couple days.
After Hurricane Katrina destroyed her home and all of her belongings,
she stayed with friends who lived nearby.
She hired a contractor, who committed fraud and stole all of her
money. Following this catastrophe, the
electric wiring was stolen from her home twice, forcing Theresa to actually
move into a trailer on her property to protect her home from future theft. Theresa explained that she was so blessed to
receive the amazing help from us and the St. Bernard Project.
Our
group then had the opportunity to ask Theresa some questions about her
experience. We were very surprised to
hear that Theresa believed that the levies did not just collapse due to the
pressure from the Mississippi River, but that the levies were purposely “blown
up” by the people who were in charge of them, as they are every 40 years. Our group had a difficult time comprehending
her theory, which she devoutly believed.
We also asked her about her faith.
She explained that her faith in “the good Lord” remains strong, but that
her faith in mankind has deteriorated. She
preferred not to answer further questions about her relationship with God and
religion.
After
this captivating interaction with Theresa, we all returned to the hostel and
showered. Then we made our way to the
French Quarter, where we split up into groups and explored the famous Bourbon
Street and the neighboring area. After
some shopping and exploring, we met up and made our way to Kosher Cajun, a New
York style deli, where we had a festive dinner.
After the meal, we returned to the French Quarter to go to Café Du
Monde, where we enjoyed its famous beignets.
Two of the three vans then returned to the hostel where we made our
sandwiches for the next day and got ready for bed.
We are
looking forward to another 2 great days of working in New Orleans! Meeting the women who are going to live in
the homes we are building only gives us more motivation to push through the hot
climate and work our hardest.
-Rachel Wolfman, Wyatt Mufson, & Jeremy Jick
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