Our good friend, Diane, visited us to help James celebrate his spring break last week. So many highlights - lots of great food, happy chatting, bead collecting and exploring.
Headshots
1 year ago
Thursday, April 23, 2009
spring break 2009
Our good friend, Diane, visited us to help James celebrate his spring break last week. So many highlights - lots of great food, happy chatting, bead collecting and exploring.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Katrina re-visited
On Friday, I was responsible for taking a group of 40 MD's, PhD's and public health students from colleges across the country on a visit to some of New Orleans 'recovery' areas. I struggled with the idea of renting a motor coach, loading it with people, and doing a show and tell of all of the devastation that still exists post-Katrina.
We visited St. Bernard Project located below the Lower 9th Ward in St. Bernard Parish. Some of the lowest ground in the area. People who lived here were 75% home owners making an average income of $38,000 per year. They worked hard and lived comfortably. Katrina wiped out the area. The people here have lost everything and are working to rebuild their lives, the St. Bernard Project is working to help them. Liz McCartney, co-founder of the project, was named the 2008 CNN Hero of the Year because of their efforts. She spoke to our group about her work and about the continued struggle to help rebuild.
The Lower 9th Ward Clinic was another part of our visit and the area where the Make it Right project is hard at work.
Roland was our driver for the day - he has lived in NOLA all of his life. He has survived Hurricane Betsy and Katrina, both times losing his home to the flood. He didn't know he was going to tell his story as we drove along, but once I started asking him questions and realized he was a survivor and that he wanted to talk about it, everything fell into place. He drove us slowly along abandoned streets of St. Bernard and the Lower 9th Ward, pointing out areas where his friends used to live and his children used to play. He told us where the levees were breached and how high the water rose and for how long. He showed us where the church was and where it isn't any longer. He talked about the temporary clinics and the people who came to help and, when asked why he came back he answered, "New Orleans is my home. When I wasn't here, I wasn't anywhere. I had to come back and I'll keep coming back."
In the end, it is necessary and important to talk about what is happening and not happening in New Orleans. I know this, but it doesn't make looking at it or talking about it any easier. The reality is that people's lives were changed forever and they are trying hard to come home - to what they know, to their families, to a place that makes sense to them.
We visited St. Bernard Project located below the Lower 9th Ward in St. Bernard Parish. Some of the lowest ground in the area. People who lived here were 75% home owners making an average income of $38,000 per year. They worked hard and lived comfortably. Katrina wiped out the area. The people here have lost everything and are working to rebuild their lives, the St. Bernard Project is working to help them. Liz McCartney, co-founder of the project, was named the 2008 CNN Hero of the Year because of their efforts. She spoke to our group about her work and about the continued struggle to help rebuild.
The Lower 9th Ward Clinic was another part of our visit and the area where the Make it Right project is hard at work.
Roland was our driver for the day - he has lived in NOLA all of his life. He has survived Hurricane Betsy and Katrina, both times losing his home to the flood. He didn't know he was going to tell his story as we drove along, but once I started asking him questions and realized he was a survivor and that he wanted to talk about it, everything fell into place. He drove us slowly along abandoned streets of St. Bernard and the Lower 9th Ward, pointing out areas where his friends used to live and his children used to play. He told us where the levees were breached and how high the water rose and for how long. He showed us where the church was and where it isn't any longer. He talked about the temporary clinics and the people who came to help and, when asked why he came back he answered, "New Orleans is my home. When I wasn't here, I wasn't anywhere. I had to come back and I'll keep coming back."
In the end, it is necessary and important to talk about what is happening and not happening in New Orleans. I know this, but it doesn't make looking at it or talking about it any easier. The reality is that people's lives were changed forever and they are trying hard to come home - to what they know, to their families, to a place that makes sense to them.
Catching monkeys
Who knew that when we attended the Muses parade that our new pal, Curious George, would fly from the hands of a queen on the float and fall into James' loving arms. George arrived beadless and with some extra nostrils drawn in. Since that time, he has caught some beads of his own, watched some parade action, taken a bike ride or two and been photographed countless times. He lives in a Mardi Gras shrine area that is steadily expanding on our kitchen table. George keeps us focused on the big picture. When life gets tough - you have to take time to stop and catch a monkey.
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