March 2007 we took the boys to New Orleans hoping to find work that needed to be done. If you talked to anyone in the family, you know they weren't ready for our help. They suggested we enjoy what New Orleans had to offer, and to return home to promote "coming back to New Orleans."
Well we had a fabulous time enjoying the bayous, shopping, architecture, food, and New Orleans traditions.
This past summer our church's youth group was heading down to New Orleans for a rebuilding mission trip, organized by Youthworks. Two weeks before their trip they put a call out at Sunday mass looking for a volunteer driver. Since Bob has so much free time, and he didn't really rebuild the first time he was in New Orleans, and he really loved the experiences we had while we were there, and we love the enthusiasm of our youth director, and ..... well there wasn't really any reason for him not to volunteer, he volunteered. a couple days before he left he said they had room for one more chaperon, and I really had no reason not to help out.... SO we both headed to New Orleans with St. Joe's youth mission group.
We really didn't know what we were signing up to do. We knew no one other than Denise the youth director and only in a very professional manner. Our first lesson was taught on the road trip down. Red (girls) and Blue (boys) don't mix... ie. make purple! We had to make a detour to pick up an additional mattress. What were we thinking? In seven days I seen less of Bob than I typically see him in a day.
Here's a glimpse of our experience...
The city of New Orleans is a vibrant city that boasts some of the greatest entertainment and finest cuisine in the world. Residents welcome tourists to the city with hospitality and flair. But in 2005, Hurricane Katrina swept through New Orleans with devastating results. Eighty percent of the city flooded—much of it completely destroyed—leaving thousands of people homeless. Your group has a unique opportunity to partner with local ministries in their amazing recovery efforts. You’ll help wherever you are needed most, through work projects, children’s ministry and more. -youthworks
Bob's group helped Miss Margaret work on her house, painting and yard work. Her yard has not been touched since the hurricane in 2005. Bob has a great story she shared about how she was rescued in a boat and how the boat was found lying on a road sign two years later.
They also worked with the youth at Kingsley House, imagine 8 hours of piggy back rides.
My group work with Recovery School District. We painted the second floor hallway of Charles Drew Elementary. It hard to imagine a public school in such poor condition. The second and third floors were not even damaged by the flood, but the quality of the decor was way below standards.
BEFORE
AFTER the first coat
My Group
My group also worked with the youth of New Orleans creating and implementing "Kid's Club." I monitored the craft room... pop tab bracelets.
Both groups also spent time with the elderly.
We traveled all that way and my favorite part of the trip was getting to know the outstanding youth in our community. They are all leaders with an unending amount of generosity to share. We are so fortunate to have amazing children coming up behind us.
If you have never "payed it forward" whether it's with a church group or not, I would highly recommend it. The amount you gain is so much more than you can give and even greater than you could imagine.
