Last year, I wouldn't have considered myself a charitable person. Not that I have a black soul or I had anything against charity; I just never thought about stepping out of my bounds and doing something... well, charitable.
This year, I've had a couple incredible opportunities to play my part and do something outside the benefits of my own life. Several weeks ago, me and my counterparts at the MLSE got the unique opportunity to partner up with Habitat for Humanity - a non-profit that helps build affordable housing - and we did just that in New Orleans, Louisiana.
I'll be honest. When I heard about this opportunity I thought, "N'awlins!? Private jet!?! Cheap vacation!?! Sign me up." However, my feelings changed the minute I got off, albeit, a gorgeous private jet and witnessed the devastation that Hurricane Katrina delivered. Even knowing it was one of the most deadliest hurricanes in history, it is impossible to fatham until you lay your eyes on the very apparent destruction and water damage that continues to be prevalent.
The trip was put together by an an inspirational man by the name of Ian Clarke who is the Executive VP of Business Development at the MLSE. He has been organizing this trip every year since the disaster and, by the end of the trip, he was getting a day named after him and being awarded a plaque by the mayor! Note to self: add "getting a day named after me" to the bucket list.
We were scheduled to help build two houses within three working days - and keep in mind I'm not Tim the Toolman Taylor and nobody I went with had any affiliations with Mike Holmes. Regardless, the MLSE brought in 64 very willing and eager volunteers, and any that might have been in vacation mode like myself, I'm sure had a complete change in perspective once being exposed to the 9th Ward. As we drove through the area for the first time, the bus was in complete silence, absorbing the still apparent destruction (after 5 years) and reflecting on our own fortunes as Canadians.
Now, I don't know if I need to explain this, but 9th Ward is a very poor neighbourhood. Little or no business resides in this area from what I saw besides a Burger King, a fried chicken and seafood joint and a barber shop that was run out of one of the delapitated homes in the area. Now consider these elements and add the predominant ethnicity of the neighbourhood; que infamous Kanye West quote. Many of the houses still look like the one above; untouched since the disaster. In most cases, these are abandoned houses of people who did not have house insurance. Many people in these circumstances moved to Texas or seeked shelter from family in other parts of the country.
On a side note, if you notice in the picture there is a few sprayed on markings on the house. In each section of the "X" it indicated 1. When the house was found 2. What organization found the house 3. Whether the gas and electrical were off in the house at arrival, and 4. How many people were found dead on arrival. In this circumstance, nobody was found dead but there was a dead dog found in the attic.
On another side note, there are still many stray dogs and cats in the area and many referbished houses reside besides houses such as this; a constant reminder of their neighbour's demise.
Such was the case for Ashanti. A native of New Orleans, Ashanti had a successful career at Exxon until the hurricane hit. After being displaced to Alabama, she lost her job and dreamed to to start fresh. One of the houses we built was for her and she even helped out during the process. The other family we helped were Jovana Jamison and her husband. They were on my site helping us out and it was incredible to work with them to help get their lives back on track.
The people we helped were so appreciative of the work we were doing and they really left us feeling like we truly did something important and helpful. In fact, the overall hospitality of everyone in New Orleans is incredible. I'm not Christopher Colombus, but I have done a fair bit of travelling in my short stay on Earth, and I can tell you that I have never felt so welcomed and enthused to be in a city by the community than I did in New Orleans. The positive outlook and optimisim of New Orleans is awesome. This is one city where you can definitely party with the locals.
Overall, after three days of hard work, we as a group got an incredible amount of work accomplished. All of us left with a brand new respect for the people of New Orleans and a brand new outlook on the necessity of volunteer work. The amount of destruction that still exists is dumbfounding and I could only imagine how other lesser developed countries are dealing with their natural disasters. This was truly a life-changing experience and left me humbled and a little distraught.
Now, I could tell you about the crazy nights on Bourbon St., the mud fest that was the Jazz Festival, Doctor John Concerts, stolent purses, sneaking into bars, stripper moms, spontanious brass band street parties, rooftop pools and cabannas at The W, Jason Segal, potential bar fights, $100 buckets of seafood, 5 am reggae parties, THC lollipops and the re-occuring "WHO DAT!" calls... but who wants to hear about all that?
Anyways, here's a cool video that demonstrates the amount we accomplished in our short time in New Orleans. WHO DAT!
