Katrina Mission Trip - Slidell Day 2
Greetings from Slidell – Day 2
Last night we had a superb dinner, and ended the evening with a devotional service that reinforced the experiences we had during the day, and they were many and varied. Brenda had set up an altar which would focus our spiritual thoughts, and Bob and Brenda led us in song and praise. It was an early night for many, and we are beginning to settle in. There were some minor changes in housing arrangements, and it was a more restful night for most. Just click on any of the pictures here, to see the full-size image.
Things moved along much more smoothly this morning, since we all knew just what our jobs would be, and what we needed to do. After a breakfast of English Pancakes (2 c flour, 2 eggs, 1/8 c sugar, and enough milk to make them a little thin (about 2 ½ c) cooked at 350 degrees on an electric griddle or frying pan and served sprinkled with granulated sugar and fresh lemon wedges) we had communion, sharing songs and praise. We packed our lunches, and then it was off to the job sites for more painting, trimming, sanding, repairing, etc. While ordinarily we might work until about 4:30 or 5:00, tonight we ended early in order to go on a tour of the town of Slidell and see more of the city. As of yet, most of us haven’t seen much more than our own work sites, so this will allow us to see more of the damaged areas, and there are plenty!
The people we have met have, for the most part, been gracious and grateful, and we will have lots of stories about our experiences.
Here is one story from one of our new friends!
Marie lived with her dog and two cats in her home in Slidell, and when news of the hurricane came, she stored most of her things in her garage, and some in her attic, and then she loaded her car to head for Baton Rouge to stay with her son. She couldn’t find one of her cats, and finally decided that she just had to leave her. She headed out on the back roads, thinking that the traffic would be less, but the trip which normally took 1 ½ hours, took over four hours. Safe in Baton Rouge, she watched what was happening on the TV, and when she was allowed back after two weeks she found, among other things, that her house had filled with 2-3 inches of mud. She was actually lucky, since her house had been built up four feet to the front porch and the ground floor, and the water had risen another foot above that, leaving the mud in her house when it subsided. Her neighbors, who had homes built directly on the ground, had five feet of water in their homes.
Possessions in her attic were safe, but everything stored in her garage had not only been destroyed by the water, but the water flow in the garage had created a whirlpool, and everything in the garage had been moved in a circle from where it had been stored, demonstrating the power of the flood! The water remained in her home for about four days as near as she could tell. For some people the water rushed in and out, and for others, remained up to ten days in their homes. Additionally, a tree had fallen on one corner of her home, taking out her air conditioner with it.
When she arrived home, she found her missing cat shivering with fright, under the fallen tree. Somehow she had survived.
It took FEMA five months to deliver a trailer to her to live in while her house was being rebuilt through UMCOR, so she lived with her son in Baton Rouge as she waited. The members of our group who were working on her house were mostly involved in finishing up work, and her house should be completed this week.
In the meantime, other groups worked on other homes, and we will share their stories soon! Here are the three groups and their homes, all of which are at the very end of their rebuild process!
We stopped work early in order to take a tour of Slidell with more new friends, Donna and Charles, who had lost their ho home here. Since it was a second home for them, they got no support from FEMA, so their home is in roughly the same condition as those we worked on were when the UMCOR work started!
In tomorrow’s message we will include photos of some of the devastation that still exists today, 18 months later!
Keep us in your prayers, as we pray for you!