Some Stories

I have always wanted to volunteer in a far off land. Whether it was building houses, cleaning-up habitat, teaching English, or just doing what I can, that part didn't really matter. It was mostly about giving a week of my time for the betterment of a community and the world.

Recently I help Dawn Dais in organizing the Dream in Motion, a volunteer group from around the country , go to the devastated New Orleans area to volunteer. I knew the area was devastated and in need of help before I set foot in the jazz capital of the country, but once we were onsite I got the full brunt of how much farther the Bayou region had to go in order to make it 'livable' again for its residents.

I was surprised to see how little had been done to restore the area to its pre-storm glory. On our tour of the area, the devastation was more encompassing that one could imagine. Pictures truly don't express the expansiveness of what we witnessed. Every neighborhood had been touched and up to its eves in polluted water. As we drove, every neighborhood, every street and every house as far as you could see, seemed empty and void of its once harmonious roots.

It felt good to leave there knowing, however small the contribution, that we had helped and made an impact. I would definitely recommend everyone get involved in something like this. It is an eye-opening experience that you should have at least once in your life. You will leave with a deep appreciation for what YOU have and how much you have to be thankful for in YOUR life. I hope to return to NOLA some day, to volunteer again and see the changes that helped renew the city and it's surrounding communities since this recent visit.

Carrie
Seattle, WA


I always tell people I felt like I was on two distinct trips while visiting New Orleans. After returning from my week of volunteer work and sightseeing in New Orleans, friends naturally want to hear about my experience. And the best way to sum up my time there is that I spent a week manically experiencing the highs and lows of humanity in the Crescent City.

Having never traveled to New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina and the floods, I had no basis for comparison for what I saw. What I felt was overwhelming sadness...in its purest and most animalistic form. TWO plus years after the disaster, the city is still in desperate need of its government, its nation, its residents, and its saviors to pay attention and to care, to act, to love. Neighborhoods are empty, businesses are shut down, homes are no longer homes -- instead, dilapidated wood skeletons remain. NOLA's soul is hurting.

Man oh man, though, is that a fun town The people, the food, the voodoo, the music, the art, the booze, the crooked streets, the funny accents, the culture, the history, and, again, the food...you'll not find New Orleans's equal anywhere in the world. Vibrant is the word that springs to mind when thinking about the town. I'm already trying to figure out a way to return next year, and the year after that, and the year after that. Perhaps one year my visit won't seem manic and I'll return talking about just one trip. Visiting New Orleans has convinced me that this town is necessary, its people are necessary, its heritage is necessary, and its vibrancy is necessary.

Heather
Berkeley, CA