THANKS TO PEOPLE OF NEW ORLEANS

Last March, I participated in a Hurricane Katrina relief team with fellow church members. In addition to my desire to lend a hand, I was motivated to serve by my fondness for New Orleans, a city I had visited several times for its wonderful and unique music, food and character.

For a week, we helped rebuild the interior of an East New Orleans house owned by Dianah, a grandmother in her 60s. She had lived in New Orleans her entire life, except for the months immediately after Katrina, when she and her family lived temporarily in Mississippi and Colorado.

By the time we arrived, Dianah had returned to her property, living in the front yard in a FEMA-issued trailer. Needless to say, Dianah was ready for her house to be livable again. Daily life in the cramped trailer was very hard on her chronically aching back. More important to Dianah, however, was that she wanted her pregnant daughter to be able to move into the house before having her baby.

During our stay, our team encountered numerous other New Orleanians who had compelling personal stories of how Katrina and its aftermath had impacted their lives. For example, our accommodations were made possible by Jim and Judy, whose historic United Methodist church in the Garden District was decimated by the storms that followed Katrina. This couple led the drive to convert the church’s parsonage into housing for relief volunteers.

We also met Mary, who works for a local Catholic mission organization. As she does for other visitors, she gave us a driving tour of the city, including her own neighborhood in the Lower Ninth Ward. She and her children had been dislodged for many months until returning to her house, which was one of the few on her street to be rebuilt. I returned home to Oakton in awe of the people I had met. Their faith and perseverance were amazing.

Just weeks after the New Orleans trip, I experienced upheaval in my own life: I was laid off by my employer of 12 years. I took the news hard. Professionally, I had never been through anything like this before. It took me five months to find a new position, which I started this September.

During the months that I was “between jobs,” I leaned on the invaluable support of my family, friends and fellow church members. I also gained strength from the people I had met in New Orleans. In many ways, my situation was completely different from theirs – thankfully, my family has financial security, and we never risked losing the roof over our heads. However, I was reminded that all people share the fact that our lives can take dramatic and unwanted turns at any time.

When this happens, with God’s help and the support of others, we can persevere and move forward. And hopefully, along the way, we – like the people of New Orleans – can set positive examples for others to follow when they too are in need.

— Jim Lovelace

Courtesy of The Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist