Last D
ecember, my family and I spent our winter break Louisiana helping to rebuild after Hurricane Rita tore through the area, and returning to NOLA, this time to Hurricane Katrina territory has been both discouraging and inspiring. So much progress has been made, and yet there is so much more to do. What is most inspiring is meeting the people who live in areas that need so much work and hearing their stories. On my first day here I volunteered to go and paint a house, not really knowing whose house it was or what the job entailed. After arriving and getting instructions from our Americorps leader Dave-o, we got to work painting trusses and columns. Over the hours that we stood on ladders with our arms painting above our heads, we learned that the house belonged to Rev, a local reverend who had lost his house to a fire years ago and had rebuilt just in time for Katrina to blow by and destroy his house again.
This new experimental house is part of a student project from Clemson University in
South Carolina. Three design students wanted to give back to the storm victims in New Orleans by working with residents to design and build new homes. Vinny, Rev’s archtect who established this project, moved down to New Orleans after graduating and has spent his entire life’s saving working on homes down here. Speaking to both Rev and Vinny has been inspiring. Rev comes by to check on his house every afternoon and is always smiling appreciatively. Vinny has so much passion for the work he is doing, moving from his hometown in New Hampshire to NOLA and speningd his days building homes for other people. The optimism of those who live here helps to encourage me whenever I feel like the work left is insurmountable. If people who see reminders of destruction everyday can look to the future, the least I can do is continue to return to New Orleans and build up all of our hopes.
ecember, my family and I spent our winter break Louisiana helping to rebuild after Hurricane Rita tore through the area, and returning to NOLA, this time to Hurricane Katrina territory has been both discouraging and inspiring. So much progress has been made, and yet there is so much more to do. What is most inspiring is meeting the people who live in areas that need so much work and hearing their stories. On my first day here I volunteered to go and paint a house, not really knowing whose house it was or what the job entailed. After arriving and getting instructions from our Americorps leader Dave-o, we got to work painting trusses and columns. Over the hours that we stood on ladders with our arms painting above our heads, we learned that the house belonged to Rev, a local reverend who had lost his house to a fire years ago and had rebuilt just in time for Katrina to blow by and destroy his house again.This new experimental house is part of a student project from Clemson University in
South Carolina. Three design students wanted to give back to the storm victims in New Orleans by working with residents to design and build new homes. Vinny, Rev’s archtect who established this project, moved down to New Orleans after graduating and has spent his entire life’s saving working on homes down here. Speaking to both Rev and Vinny has been inspiring. Rev comes by to check on his house every afternoon and is always smiling appreciatively. Vinny has so much passion for the work he is doing, moving from his hometown in New Hampshire to NOLA and speningd his days building homes for other people. The optimism of those who live here helps to encourage me whenever I feel like the work left is insurmountable. If people who see reminders of destruction everyday can look to the future, the least I can do is continue to return to New Orleans and build up all of our hopes.
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