The
Times-Picayune Point of View
Volunteers dig out homes, return
changed
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Ernestine R. Mcglynn
On April 25, a group from my church in Ann Arbor, Mich., flew to New
Orleans. We had volunteered to gut flood-ruined homes under the auspices
of a Catholic Charities program called Operation Helping Hands.
Touro Street. Voisin Street. St. Ferdinand Street. Under ordinary circumstances,
these streets would be full of life, families, activity. Not so now.
What we volunteers from St. Francis of Assisi found instead were devastated
neighborhoods and miles of streets devoid of people, businesses and life
in general.
There were few flowers to be seen in this spring of 2006. There were
few traffic lights. No shops, no gas stations, no food stores. Shopping
centers were broken down and empty. And thousands of damaged cars were
stacked under the expressway with no place to be recycled or destroyed.
To us, the scene looked like a war-torn city that most Americans have never
experienced. It was really ghastly; it felt like a knife in my heart.
So what could 38 church volunteers accomplish in this situation? Well,
we knew when we arrived that the people of New Orleans felt hope. That
feeling was all around us in the city. And we knew they felt a deep and
abiding gratitude for the work we did. I want to believe that we showed
in small measure what a writer once described as compassion: "a willingness
to insert oneself into the chaos of another."
But small efforts can yield significant results. As 38 people of all
ages cleaned and gutted six houses during the week we were there, six houses
were made ready for further rebuilding or for destruction. One way or another,
they had to be prepared. And so we used our hands and our energy for six
families who were desperate for some assistance.
One home was owned by an 84-year-old woman who was not personally able
to gut her own house. Her relatives were concerned about whether she should
return to such an empty neighborhood, even as her home was made ready.
There were many other homes nearby that stood empty, desolate and beyond
repair. Would we want to live in that kind of neighborhood? Would we want
our mothers to?
Another home was filled to the ceiling with the contents of its owners'
former life. From the upside-down refrigerator, the broken dishes, the
ironed shirts hanging in the closet, the mud-caked jewelry and the broken,
wet pictures forever lost, the owners' life was reduced to a garbage heap
unceremoniously carted away. The upended furniture and the exercise equipment
and rotting beds and couches lay there for eight months waiting for us
to carry them out and bury them.
But the house that broke our hearts was the one on St. Ferdinand Street.
The owners' son, Jimmy, worked side by side with us during the grim task.
The 47-year-old man kept his composure, but we had to work very hard to
keep ours as he hauled his parents' things to the curb. We were very grateful
that he shared dinner with us that night.
When we stripped the home down to the studs and saw the termite and
mold damage, we tried to feel hopeful that some other hands could rebuild
this house and make it a home again. Since our job ended with spraying
the studs with bleach, we had to have faith that this family would return
to New Orleans one day.
We realize that what we and other volunteers did is just the beginning.
Much work remains. Now that we are back in Michigan, we are urging others
to band together, travel to New Orleans and help as well. As we've told
them, they'll be amply rewarded by the community we care about, and which
we want to see heal and be made whole again.
. . . . . . .
Ernestine R. Mcglynn lives in Ann Arbor, Mich. Her e-mail address
is emcglynn@sbcglobal.net.
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*****5
Dear Ernestine,
Thank you for your lovely article in today's paper.
We often feel forgotten down here in New Orleans. I was so happy
to know that people were still coming here to help with the relief efforts.
God bless all of you who came in the heat to do what many would not wish
their worst enemies to do.
I am so happy you saw my beloved New Orleans.
Our city is so unique and special but I feel it is mostly dead. I
am still trying to convince myself it will come back. New Orleans is a
way of life for me.
I thank you and your church members from the bottom
of my heart. THANK YOU for helping my New Orleans and our people.
God be with you,
Claire K.
****6
Thank you for such an upbeat, positive article about
New Orleans.
Barbara C.
*****7
I just wanted to thank you and your group for helping my hometown New
Orleans. And you are right - hope is what it is all about.
Sally Ann Roberts, a morning news host, quoted a writer (sorry I missed
his name) that wrote about hope and patience. She said being patient
with hope is very hard, but the hardest patience of all is the patience
of waiting for hope to arrive. That is where New Orleans is- waiting
for hope to arrive. Each volunteer group brings a little hope with
them. It says to us "we care and you are not forgotten." The
help with the houses IS appreciated but no words can express the value
of the hope you bring with you.. It is immeasurable. It means
we will have the strength to face one more day of uncertainty. Thank
you so much!
Dr. Jolie H.
****8
Hello Ernestine,
I read your article in yesterday's "Times Picayune" and felt compelled
to respond.
I would like to thank you a thousand times for helping those 6 families
with their homes. I hope you know what an impact you have had on them
and all of us. You have not only helped them physically, but you have
given them the emotional strength to go to the next step. And that
is
what we need now. You have given us the encouragement to continue on
in
our plans to rebuild -- The encouragement that we are not getting from
our city or federal officials. Yes, we need that. We would love to
have
it from our own government, we would love to be able to muster it up
from the depths of our own soul, but, when those two paths come to
an
end, we need it from people like you. With all the effort that you
and
your group put into our city, you have given us the belief that we
will
accomplish our task. That we will once again, have our city back.
I thank you for your time, your hard work, and for visiting my city.
I
hope you will return again soon.
Celeste A., CMP
Assistant Director of Events
Hilton New Orleans Riverside
*****9
Dear Ms. Ernstine McGlynn,
Thank you for your touching and heart-felt article
that appeared in today's (8/1/06)Times-Picayune Editorial Section of the
newspaper.
Many, many residents of metro-New Orleans are
so overwhelmed by the acts of kindness and selflessness of volunteers throughout
the country and other parts of the world arriving here daily to assist
in the repairs/rebuilding of our crippled city and its surrounding communities.
I speak for so many individuals who are extremely thankful for the continuous
flow of volunteers, and they taking the time and energy from their personal
lives to travel to metro-New Orleans to "help" during the first phase of
rebuilding NOLA -- the clean-up phase.
Unfortunately, so much negative press is reported
to the outside world regarding the rebuilding of metro-New Orleans that
we, the residents of NOLA, feel anything positive that takes place in our
crippled city is forgotten, such as, the massive groups of volunteers (all
ages and walks of life) who arrive here daily and or weekly to give "helping
hands."
Again, thank you for a well-written article and
I was "choked-up" and "teary eyed" while reading it . Also, it is
truly wonderful to know that so many people still believe in our city and
with so many hard-working, ordinary people living here, I do have faith,
hope, confidence and patience that we, the residents of metro-New Orleans,
will overcome this devastation.
Thank you,
Abigail H.
resident of Metairie, Louisiana
(suburb of metro-New Orleans)
P.S.--Please keep a watchful eye on our city and
state (and prayers) especially during the end of August and throughout
September because that's the time period Louisiana typically experiences
"hurricane" threats!!!
*****...
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GOING SOUTH: Preparing to go again
As we begin to prepare for our next trip to help
with the clean-up, we will be sharing some of our reflections about our
last April 2006 trip in this FORUM column over the next several weeks (August
/ September 2006).
This week one of our St. Francis Parish - Going
South - member’s thoughts were published in the New Orleans newspaper,
the Times Picayune. Below are excerpts from one of the readers she
received in response to her article.
*****1
Dear Ms. McGlynn:
I enjoyed reading your article in the Point of View
section in today's Times-Picayune. Living in New Orleans now is almost
surreal. Each morning brings a new set of problems and/or accomplishments.
The old saying "two steps forward, one&1/2 back" was never truer. One
of the things that keeps my family rising with a positive attitude every
morning is knowing that this city is worth restoring. I can't imagine America
without New Orleans. I want you to know we are so grateful for the unbelievable
number of volunteers pouring into town.
The help and hard work that the faith based charities
give is so uplifting. We can never fully repay this kindness from our fellow
Americans but know that we will try. Please come back to New Orleans and
enjoy the hospitality of our city at Mardi Gras or the Jazz Fest. Come
and enjoy our wonderful restaurants. Visit our fabulous zoo-the animals
are so happy to be back home. Try a Pimms Cup in the patio at the Napoleon
House and while you're sipping it remember with pride that you helped restore
one of the most unique cities in America. New Orleans really appreciates
Ann Arbor, St. Francis of Assisi and people like you. Thank you for your
support.
Christa M.
New Orleans
*****2
hi evelyn,
my name is janine and i read your piece in our times
picayune, the new orleans newspaper. thank you so much for coming,
first of all and secondly for stating so well the positive affects of your
time here in the city. i have been living in a conference center
since december (and just returned to my house last evening) and was
privileged to meet many folks, young, old and in between, who were here
to help us with the recovery.
each one seemed to experience what you described.
a friend of mine came with students from hawaii. they worked so hard in
the 9th ward, where the devastation was greatest. later he aked if
i thought they helped any/did any good. o, my, what a question~
you have no idea the impact your presence has had on our community.
it has broadened our eyes as well. prior to
your coming, it never would have occurred to me to pick up and go to sanfrancisco
after the earthquake or to florida after their multiple storms. this
incredible generosity and solidarity has taught us many things as well.
we have all grown., and what a boost to have help, to know
we are not forgotten, that human beings will step to the plate when comnpassion
and self sacrifice is called for.
i take the liberty of speaking on behalf of the
residents of my community in expressing heartfelt thanks for your effort,
your compassion, and for spreading the word.
please extend the same to the folks who joined you
here for our wellbeing.
may you receive, hundreds of times over, a rich
return for your goodness.
janine b. (a sister of st. joseph)
****3
Dear Ms Mcglynn,
Your letter to the Editor of the Times-Picayune appeared on July 17,
and I read it with much appreciation and gratitude. The humanitarian efforts
of you, your colleagues and the many thousands of others who have
come to assist New Orleans as it struggles toward recovery, have been received
with the heartfelt thanks of all the citizens of this stricken city and
its environs. Many kind and good-hearted people have given their time and
talents to the rebuilding process, which will take a great deal of time
to complete, but thanks in great part to caring people such as yourself,
the job will someday be finished, and our lovely old city will again be
able to stand on its own feet.
I have been somewhat disheartened to read that in some quarters it is
felt that New Orleans is not worth saving, but I cannot believe this opinion
is shared by the majority of the people of America, who have shown so many
times their ability and willingness to rally around a community in need
of help. And so, I will continue in the certain knowledge that in
the end, all will be well.
While my daughters and I live in an area that was spared the most severe
effects of Katrina, our lives continue to be impacted by the aftermaths
of the storm - but we have much for which to be thankful. We are
alive and safe and our homes were not seriously damaged.
On behalf of my daughters and I, and the thousands of other lives your
thoughtfulness has touched, I would like to express our thanks to you and
all the other "Angels of Mercy" who have come to help us through these
trying times.
With sincere thanks,
Emmett J.
Metairie, LA 70003
PS-- Ms Glynn, I have typed this letter for my father, on my computer,
to send to you for him. I am Katy, one of the aforementioned daughters,
and I would like to add my personal thanks to you for your kindness to
the people of New Orleans. It has been stunning, humbling, uplifting,
tear-inducing and overwhelming, to witness the outpouring of compassion
and real, hands-on help from people like you, in a time of such trouble
for this flawed but worthwhile city. It is impossible, really, to
find adequate words to express my gratitude, both for the help you have
given, and for the restoration of spirits one feels when one has their
faith in humanity bolstered. These are enormous gifts that you give.
Please do tell everyone in your group, and anyone else that you speak
to of it, that we here in New Orleans are so very appreciative of your,
their and everyones' generosity.
Thank you ever so much.
Katy J.
*****4
Dear Ms McGlynn,
After reading you letter in our paper I felt compelled to thank you
and your fellow volunteers for coming to our area and working so hard.
Although we live in Metairie and had no flooding, many of our friends and
family weren't so fortunate. Our former residence , as well as that
of my parents, was severely flooded. (I am very grateful that
my father and mother were not alive to experience the destruction.)
We have an extremely long road ahead before we return to a degree of normalcy
, which will require much prayer and effort. Many are dedicated to
return and make this a better place. We are all anxious for that
to occur. May God bless you and your fellow parishioners for you
kindness, and compassion. Many thanks.
Pat Ellzey
*****...
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