6.27 New Orleans Day 2
Today was our first work day in New Orleans. We’re working with the Episcopal Diocese of New Orleans and the Louisiana Disaster Relief. We all split off to do different jobs and it took a while to transport 27 people to 4 different sites in a 15 passenger van. I finally arrived at my site around 10am and Alf, John and I helped gut a house. The elderly lady who lives there almost didn’t flee the hurricane. She was just going to go next door to her neighbor’s second story. But it’s a good thing she did leave last minute because the 6 foot wall of water came into the neighborhood so fast that she wouldn’t even have had time to get next door. Crazy…So she’s asked for her house to be gutted and she’ll probably end up selling it because she doesn’t feel like redesigning it at her age and I don’t blame her. The gutting was started yesterday and by today there were no walls or floors. We took down the ceiling today and had to clean it all up. It was hot and dusty and the face masks we had to wear were awful. I give major props to those volunteers who gut houses all day everyday for long periods of time. I was covered in fiber glass hairs at the end of the day and had to take a cold shower so that it didn’t irritate my skin. I’m really glad I had the experience though. We worked with some great people from Seattle and I felt like we accomplished a lot. I am surprised however at the neighborhood we worked in today because the houses were really nice and didn't seem too damaged. I know there are parts of the city that were completely destroyed so I hope that I get to help out there as well.
For dinner tonight, Whitney's mom and friend provided us with turkey burgers, salad, corn, baked potatoes, watermelon and ice cream. It was amazing and for my dinner crew duties of the week I was grill master tonight. Forty burgers in about 20 minutes on a hardcore kitchen grill...not bad...I had to stand on a stool to reach over the burgers...
This evening I walked with some girls to the waterfront and then over to the French Quarter and Bourbon Street. It was amazing and I absolutely love this city. It really has so much culture and charm I can't really explain it. I'm just so excited that we'll be here for another few days. Our taxi driver on the way home completely made my night. We told him about what we're doing with Bike and Build and he was so excited for us. He told us in his sweet Pakistani accent to remember that his love is with us all during our journey. I love meeting people like that.
I've updated pictures so check it out. Much love.
2 comments:
Hey Cait - You're doing great work! Just figured out this morning that each picture was actually a group of pictures! Love,
Mom
Oh my gosh...New Orleans looks AMAZING!!! It's so awesome how much of the country you're seeing on your travels, Cait! I'm so proud of you!! Love, Melissa
Post a Comment