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Mission
Trip
New Orleans, July 2007
When the Senior High advisors first came
up with the idea of going to New Orleans on a mission trip, I personally
thought that this was something bigger than just the kids. I wanted to see
if we could involve the congregation and I was so glad when things worked
out that way. It was so neat to see Peggy Kunkel take a group of teenage
girls into inner city New Orleans to work on a painting project. To watch
the Dumonds take a group to another house to work—these are the visions
I had in mind when we planned this trip.
The trip to New Orleans was LONG. I love to travel but this was a
long trip even for me. When told that we had to detour before we got to
the city almost pushed me to the edge. It turned out we were able to see
some beautiful homes and then take a 28 mile bridge over Lake Pontchartrain.
I survived the trip!
Monday was a day of orientation and then some time at our first home.
Five of our kids and myself went to a home near the Superdome downtown
to do some painting. I was a little disappointed with this day as I didn’t
feel we had the proper materials or proper personnel to do the work we
were sent to do. We called it a day early in the afternoon and went back
to camp to help out.
Tuesday was a whole new adventure as a group of us went to break down
Camp Attonement, which is where we originally were going to be staying.
After seeing and breaking down this camp I can say we were truly blessed
to be staying at Bethlehem Volunteer Center. The only air conditioning would
have been in our 8’ x 8’ sleeping area. Everything else was outside including
the porta pottys. It was hard work but we broke the majority of the camp
down in a single day. The most fun was taking down the two circus sized tents.
They came down and were disassembled easily. We spent that evening in the
French Quarter doing a little sight seeing, something I felt we should
do, since we were in New Orleans.
Wednesday and Thursday were spent at a home near BVC that still needed
some gutting and cleaning out. This was the first time I really felt like
I was doing something to help a victim of the hurricane. A group of us
pulled down remaining drywall, most of it still in tight places like closets
and halls, pulled nails out of the studs, and cleaned out insulation. Some
of us swept and picked up the knee-high debris, taking it all out to the
curb. I was disappointed that I never met the homeowner but was pleasantly
surprised when a neighbor, who seemed to be excited that the home was being
worked on, brought over his weed eater and chain saw and began cleaning up
the property. Sam Marchese and I took turns weed whacking the 2 foot high
lawn while the neighbor started taking down the small brush and trees that
had grown over the past two years. By the time our group was done on Thursday
the home was ready for bleaching and de-molding so the sheetrock could soon
be hung.
Wednesday and Thursday nights were filled with completely different
emotions. Wednesday we took an exhilarating airboat tour through the bayous
and met some alligators that seem to be attracted to marshmallows! Sitting
close to the edge with bright white sneakers on wasn’t my smartest move
but I still have all my toes. On the way back in to shore there was a beautiful
sunset which would contrast greatly with the following evening.
Thursday night we toured Chalmette, also known as the ninth ward.
Before we left Bethlehem we were asked to be sensitive to the few people
who are still there. Here we found a city in ruin two years after the
storm. We drove down a major boulevard where stores and businesses were
still boarded up. We toured streets and streets of devastation. We passed
an office building with a parking lot full of trailers, obviously still
trying to stay in business. The darker it became no lights were coming
on-still no power. We headed back with a new sense of awareness of how big
a storm this was.
We headed home Friday exhausted from the work we did and overwhelmed
by the work that still needs to be done. I truly hope I get a chance to
return to continue with the relief effort. I’m just glad I had the opportunity
to play a small role in the recovery.
- Mark Cook
If you were part of the Mission Trip and have a
story you'd like to share,
please e-mail Bonny McCabe.
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