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NDA Alumnae: Notre
Dame Academy | Annual Reunion
| Contact a Classmate |Class
of 1971 photos | Contact Alumnae Office
| Alumnae News Archive |
8/30/05 I have been with some of the hurricane Katrina refugees for the last five hours. Most are in my remote area of the world (a small town in central Louisiana) because they could not take their pets into the shelters and they refused to abandon the pets. A few are here because they couldn't find any place else to be....a few tried and were turned away because of over-crowding...and a handful just followed the car ahead of them and this is where it stopped. Some are very well equipped for camping. Others have nothing. Not even a tent. Over half of them have lost it all. And I do mean ALL. They range in age from infant to age 94. All races. All measure of job classification. No distinction between haves and have nots as they are all stuck in the same campground.
They wanted more than anything else to have information. They wanted information about family members that were separated in the confusion. They wanted an eye witness verification that their house was now under water. Odd though it may seem watching the pictures on TV and seeing what WAS once their town under water... one would think they could conclude the obvious. Yet they somehow want to cling to hope that their house was THE ONE spared in that now nonexistent town. They cling to hope above all else. They want to know when they can go back. Even when you try and gently explain what was - is no longer. The road is gone. The town is gone. There is NO chance to go back. Still they ask again. How does one wrap their mind around that? If you did get there, there is no food, no water, no trees, no anything. And yet the mind won't allow that basic info to process.
9/01/05 We are seeing some of what you are seeing on TV (we see less of it - but we are getting a sense of what you see). The entire state is not under water though. At least half the state is fine. And doing its best to help the damaged half. Frankly - we ARE doing a pretty effective job if I do say so myself. Not everyone is as bad off as the ones in New Orleans. Many have food and shelter and hundreds of ordinary people working round the clock to make things sort of normal. And in lots of places there is a really odd form of normal settling in.... standing in lines, filling out forms.....sharing stuff.....asking for help in a big way, admitting you are scared .....asking for news......
We are doing fine. But it is not from outside sources. It is from folks passing along stuff from pantries and coolers and stored supplies. Sort of like a modern day loaves and fishes miracle. Everyone shares and everyone eats plenty. No one is hungry. Everyone in our refugee camp had a hot meal tonight - and that was a pretty darn good hot meal. Full tummies for everyone. We will be purchasing fresh veggies tomorrow...and some treats for the kids. But I want you to know in Central Louisiana - everyone has water, shelter, and food (and restrooms of some sort)........and we have LOTS of refugees. We are about to get five thousand (plus) more in our area. And we are ready for them. Lafayette has more than we do and by all accounts all basic services are being met.
By way of understanding what I am seeing - today we had some good news in our camp as THREE families found out their homes were spared. They will NOT be allowed into the areas for a month - but they know they will have a home waiting. But I was also talking with a family when our conversation was interrupted to tell them that they had lost it all. There is nothing to salvage. There are no words to share. If you can believe it - in our little camp, three of the refugees with boats left their families to go to New Orleans to help get people out off the roofs. The camp (now over thirty families and growing rapidly)....took up their own collection of surplus items to outfit everyone with more security. Tomorrow we are organizing to send out surplus to other shelters with less.
And we have had miracles. So many miracles. I am sharing one brief one with the refugee's permission. A couple married 28 years had separated before all of this mess. They found themselves fighting constantly over the house. How much it cost...how much maintenance....what to do NEXT with the house.....and they actually moved apart and were about to file for a divorce. He realized with only minutes to spare they were about to lose their lives - he drove like a madman to get her out of the house.....and they drove together out running the storm to our area. Where they have reconciled and realigned priorities......they are from St. Bernard's Parish. The entire Parish is gone. It does not exist any more. They have nothing. And they only can talk about what has been saved. Not what has been lost.
9/2/05
Amid the frustration the other news you have not heard are the scenes that don't warrant the media spotlight. Like the woman I met tonight that came home in a towel tonight (I verified the story with her daughter).....she took the clothes off her back to give them to newly arriving refugees from New Orleans. Or the bone weary nurse I saw at Wendy's tonight .....propped up against the wall waiting for a salad. Soooo tired.....and she ended up leaving without it.....cuz more people were arriving at our hospital from New Orleans.....it is not unlike of the all nighter scenes from the M.A.S.H television show. But this nonstop support is real. One of "my" families left our camp today. Before leaving I watched them divide up the few belongings they had - giving them to the remaining refugees. It was difficult to watch.
In closing - since such a situation could occur in your area too (natural disasters are everywhere).....I suggest you get an emergency bag in order including copies of all of your medicines, insurances, identification cards and copies of your very favorite photos. One thing I hear over and over again is the regret of not having saved family photos.
9/4/05
We have some new arrivals tomorrow and with each group our needs shift. UNLIKE one week ago - we have provisions ready - a shelter for them .....even welcome signs made by other residents.
Compared to most of the state - we are living in paradise. And we don’t forget that for one second.
God has heard your prayers and worked through us. Your prayers have provided
the fuel that kept us going this first week. This awful first week. Your
prayers - I am convinced - have made our efforts efficient and effective.
9/6/05
Let's focus for a minute on the bright stars, because we have had some
outstanding success stories.
The medical community everywhere at every level has been outstanding.
ANY FAILURE that might be held against them - from all I can see is due
to things beyond their control.
I say if you know any person who is IN the local or national medical community
- give them a hug.
They have been on it and doing it from all reports I have seen...and what the eye witnesses have shared with me.
The citizens of this nation shine so brilliantly there can be no mention of discord. THIS MUCH COMPASSION can only be delivered by a GREAT nation.
From what I have seen (and again this is ONE person's opinion) much praise is also owed to every local chuch of every denomination. The Salvation Army has been there for EVERYONE. The FOOD BANK has saved lives .....every food bank.....they have been there for desperate people.
Countless restaurants have stopped charging for food - they are operating
at a loss but feeding people.
Hotels (mom and pop places that wouldn't have a clue how to file for a
reimbursement) have opened their doors.
Animal shelters are building pens everywhere to try and handle the outflow of abandoned pets....and their pleas for food haven't seen the light of day (of course - our initial focus HAD TO be on saving human life.) That is completely understandable. (But completely frustrating if you are trying to feed and care for the Noah's ark at hand for a week without any hope of an end in sight).
The teenagers who have showed up in fantastic numbers to volunteer to baby-sit at the shelters and give everyone a break is a story of heroism I fear will never be mentioned. TEENS HAVE NOT BOTHERED to wait. They organized themselves and they are doing things. They don't know they can't just do that.
The people glued to their TV passing information in to us.......telling us how and where help could be located by way of web pages, 800 numbers - internet links........people who relayed calls from the trapped and the frightened......all heros.
And I NEVER thought I would say this in a zillion years - but this time
I have to hand it to the media. They kept up a running account of the
situation that was dead on accurate and FORCED a reaction from those with
a fingers in their ears.
9/7/05
The fact that I know what day it is this morning is a big improvement.
Last week is one long day......it is impossible for to tell you what
happened on what day for the most part as they just ran together.
We have been assisting people who are leaving here.....going to more permanent
situations - in record numbers and have no new arrivals coming in here
(to the campground) - however there are still many people in homes in
our area, in churches in our area.....and on private land in our area.
Two of the families (from St. Bernard's Parish) have lost everything
- it has floated away and is gone. And they don't think it is wise to
return to living in a bowl. They do not want to tempt fate and return
there.
They are looking for land and calculate they will have settled their affairs
there in the next three to four months and are looking for real estate
in Alexandria or possibly out around Camp Bring it On (it really is beautiful
here.)
One of the families has an autistic child who cannot be in a shelter.
He needed an immediate place that would not change, that would not have
people he did not know interrupt his schedule - and he needs a very
quiet home. We fit his needs perfectly. They are situated in a fine new
RV.....just the boy and his mother. There are frequent visits from the
remainder of the "rest" of the family on the weekends but only
in ones and twos to not upset the quiet of his life. The remainder of
the family is rebuilding their home...it will be complete in six months
or less and mom and son will return there at that time. We set them in
the most remote camping area and I check on them dally (but we have advised
the other campers to leave them be and explained why)
The last of permanent - sort of - residents are rebuilding their home in Jefferson Parish (by New Orleans) and they have kin in the area. So they are well supplied and self sufficient.
As each group pulled out we helped them pack....loaded them up with food and water, filled their gas tanks (our local feed store has the only gas pump for twenty-five miles around here and they have been providing gas to the Katrina survivors for free since they arrived). The rest of us have stopped any unnecessary driving. We voluntarily are limiting our travels to the relief effort only.
In addition to helping them with food and water and ice and gasoline
- we have shared any cash we received.
The way re run charity out here in the country is a community canning
jar. For a hundred years or more - that is the tradition. If someone in
is in need out here - the local feed store puts a canning jar on the check-out
counter with the families name on it. When we see it. We know a neighbor
has a need and that is all we need to know.
As our tradition goes - if you have money - you put it in. Plain and simple. That is the way we like it out here. And if you don't have any money to share - you are STILL expected to offer a prayer. If you can write - you can jot it down and add it to the jar. If you can't write - we still expect you will at least include them in your daily prayers. There is no written record of who gives per se....as the feeling here is EVERYONE gave. Some money. Some prayers. Some both. We don't keep records like that out here....dollars and cents records. Incidentally, in my five years of living here - I have seen some really big donations in that jar...not just pennies. It a system that requires the giver to give cuz they want to - not cuz they get credit for it. I have always admired the simple country ways of these folks. Never more than this past week.
So every day - we give whatever is in the jar to the departing family. And if there are two families leaving we divide the cash. And we are sending them of with all that they need and way more than they expected.
I think we are working far more effectively out here BECAUSE we keep it simple.
So....we are down to less than a dozen families in Camp Bring it On and
four of them are semi-permanent.
And that has roughly been accomplished in one weeks time.
In one week we have gathered shelter - outfitted the folks, fed them, hugged them, recorded their stories, had a community feed and a community worship....found them new more livable surroundings and supplied them to get there. Not bad for one weeks work. I intend to have everyone but our final four out of our camp within two weeks.
9/9/05
What has happened here -- between a lonely voice in rural Louisiana and
a very caring world reached through email-- has happened a thousand-fold
across Louisiana. So many strangers reaching in to help us. Us the survivors
-- and us the relief volunteers. Both groups overwhelmed. Overwhelmed
by the enormity of the task....and overwhelmed by the kindness and courage
of people making it their business to give a damn.
We have often felt as helpless as I am hearing from you - y'all have been feeling. But from the very first moments I have shared with you that our REAL recovery is not a dollars and cents issue. It is a humanitarian aid issue.......one compassionate heart to the next.
No rules. No qualifications. No waiting.
I believe the lingering frustration we feel is one we predicted early on. So many thousands of people (citizens) stood up and did the right thing. They maxed credit cards, emptied savings accounts, put their life on the line and their families on hold.....and they waded into the fiasco rendering aid without hesitation.
They cut a wide swath of hope amid despair.
Taking help has been difficult for all of us. It is NOT easy to accept help graciously but we are learning to do just that. All of us. The entire state.
We would FAR RATHER be the ones giving aid.....but this time around - we have to buck up and realize we need the help and promise .....a sacred vow.....each of us......that when the other 49 states are in the jam we are in that we will give with even half the generosity that the United States citizens have poured to us - unconditionally.
Good heavens....if you can see TV (we can't ) and see how much love and help and prayers and hope are being sent to us - you cannot remain unaffected.
And you cannot avoid a lump in your throat.
One of our biggest blessings is the people who call themselves Americans.
MORE HEROS TO NOTE
THE LIBRARIES AND LIBRARIANS......WOW! The help they have provided is
PRICELESS....
The local libraries (big and small) have MADE THEIR OWN computer network....they
have tireless helped family after family to view their homes.....they
have been a non-stop help desk of links and phone numbers for everyone.......volunteers,
relief workers....and survivors. They quickly got out books, magazines
and newsapers....they have been THE authority for rumor control.......they
have brokered information in a big way between those having resources
and those needing resources...and they have been directly responsible
for assisting in the missing persons effort....registering many, many,
many people on line. THANKs are owned them big time. They did, many times
over, - a heroic effort
THE MILITARY - all branches - without question saved lives!!! Lots of
them.
What you should do to prepare for a mess like this
while no one can prepare for it - you can minimize the impact
.......have a stash of cash on hand at your house
................many people assumed they would be able to readily get
cash and no one could
......keep your Extreme valuables in one location...preferably with some type of carrying case/box nearby
.........Have someone OUTSIDE your state hold copies of your important
documents and family photos
you will need to be able to prove you are FROM the affected area for ANY
assistance.
If there is a flood and your drivers license is ruined or lost - you are
out of luck for a long, long time...for getting any aid. Photo copy at
least one photo idea and send it to your trusted safe house out of state.
......Make a reciprocal arrangement (in advance) with another family
out of state. If a major event hits your area they will take you in. And
if one hits THEIR area - you will serve as host for them. It is not uncommon
for a family today in Louisiana in a "safe part of the state"
to be hosting four or five other famiilies. All too quickly the stituation
of 30 - 50 people in a three bedroom house (with two bathrooms) is becoming
unworkable.
We need to plan in adavance a way to spread out the living arrangements.
PLAN AHEAD how you will exit with the whole family INCLUDING YOUR PETS!!!!!!!
Many if not most hotels DID allow the animals to stay inside the hotel.
Read that again and do it! Don't just ut that one off. PLAN what you will
do. Thousands of pets were abandoned because no one planned for them.
Plan an exit in more than one direction (if you live in the mid-west - have an east coast safe house to flee to and a west coast safe house for example.)
Have an out of state location as THE family contact (everyone call grandma as soon as you are able) (or email her) and she will act as our information central.....type of thing.
DO NOT WAIT........get out at the first sign of impending doom.
Pack food that does not have to be cooked.
Pack water (as much as you can spare)
Do not waste space on clothing - that is the ONE THING that will reach you before food or water.
Pack a flashlight and a pocket knife. Wet ones/moist towelettes and plastic
bags come in handy.
HAVE AN EMERGENCY FIRST AID KIT with you.
COPY prescriptions...REMEMBER TO PACK your meds!!!!!
Keep a disposable camera handy (maybe by the jewelry)
Have a phone card handy or a cell phone (THOSE WERE A LIFE LINE)
Be kind to volunteer relief workers - they are going to be as tired and frustrated as you ...and in a case like this - likely as not - not trained to do the job they are attempting......
Do NOT believe every rumor you hear but DO listen for a pattern of reports....often times if you are hearing something multiple times from different people - it has a ring of truth. For all they get wrong - the media did a pretty good job of reporting things this time around........other than the race issue (which I have yet to see even slightly)......they got most things right. In this case - the cell phone/lap top visiting with out of state relatives proved to be very valuable....often times we had MORE information and more accurate information coming in from y'all than we had from officials.
Check on your neighbors. The best way to have good neighbors is to be one (my mother always told me that and she was right - again.)
Always know that you live in the United States of America and for all the fault and stammers and problems - your fellow citizens will do right by you. Count on that.
Personal Note to the Sisters of Notre Dame:
To the Sisters, thanks from me and from the Camp Bring It On survivors
for prayers. Our spirit remained high – and ya know – more
than once I hummed that good old School Song under my breath – the
spirit of Notre Dame is harm for none and help for all – I learned
it there – I lived it here.
Final email October 27, 2005
Incidentally, I am not sure if you know that our area (we the support
group) was hit during Rita.....nonetheless we also provided support to
the evacuees of that storm too.
In fact, I just received official word last Saturday (Oct 23 ) that we could stop boiling our water and have NORMAL tap water again!
As an after-thought.....if anyone SHOULD want to assist financially I am in contact with two of our (camp) graduate families and both are in need of assistance. Our community continues to send what we can to help....but we are very small in numbers.
The family from Slidell, LA is currently - still - living in a camper.....they had NO insurance but they are hopeful they can apply for a FEMA trailer to put on their land and start life over).....they are, incidentally senior citizens.
The other family is from St. Bernard's Parish (underwater) - their home cannot be salvaged but they intend to rebuild somewhere in that area......and they too are struggling financially. They DID have insurance but so far their insurance company is refusing to pay for the entire loss claiming only part of it was due to the hurricane (wind damage) the rest was due to flooding which is NOT covered.
The LAST family has remained here. A Catholic woman and her autistic son (also has Downs Syndrome)......we would love to assist them in finding some land in our area and making them permanent residents. We were able to get donations for her son, Dannie, to have proper uniform pants and he is attending St. Mary's school for special kids. He loves it. We will, eventually, need to outfit mom with new clothes (office clothes) so she can apply for work (previously a Legal Secretary in New Orleans.)
So...if anyone should ask - there are at least three families with specific needs....I would be happy to relay any aid. You can reach me through the Notre Dame Sisters.