Volunteers save home of struggling couple
By Tara E. Smith
ST. BERNARD PARISH, La –When a team of Operation Blessing volunteers showed up at the doorstep to Daniel and Joy's house in St. Bernard Parish, they literally saved the home from being bulldozed.
Daniel and Joy's life hasn't been easy following Katrina. The couple's home was severely damaged, sustaining 14 feet of water due to the hurricane.
Daniel, a pump operator with St. Bernard Parish, had open-heart surgery five weeks before the hurricane and recently injured his shoulder with a chainsaw. He fell from a tree while working with the levee board to cut down trees post-Katrina.
In addition, the couple cares for their handicapped brother and sister-in-law.
Unable to do any repairs on his house due to his recent injury, Daniel put his home on the list to be bulldozed.
But that was before a team of Operation Blessing volunteers from Omaha, Nebraska, began gutting his home.
“We had put it on the list to be demolished. I just had open-heart surgery," said Daniel. “These kids came by and we took it off the list. If it wasn't for these kids, there wasn't any sense in us taking it off the list."
“After the work we did, he realized he was going to be able to save the house," said Nikola Jordan, 22 and a student at the University of Nebraska. “We have been able to find some things for them. They are just the most appreciative family with southern hospitality…we are just so happy to be able to do this for them."
The couple was so overwhelmed with gratitude that they treated the 14-member team of students from the University of Nebraska and the University of Omaha to home-cooked Louisiana cuisine.
“Yesterday, they brought us 50 pounds of crawfish and made us seafood gumbo," said Katlin Wells, a University of Nebraska student. “Today they are making us red beans and rice. And tomorrow, they are making us jambalaya."
“My wife has been doing all that cooking," Daniel said. “When they first came, they had MREs (Meals-Ready-to-Eat). My wife said ‘no, ya'll can't work on that.' So we cooked them some good ole' southern food. The girls said that the crawfish look like aliens."
For team members Wells and Jordan, this marks their second trip in volunteering with OBI's disaster relief team. Both came previously during spring break.
“I think coming down the first time you see the amount of need that is here. Human compassion drives you to come back. I don't think as a global citizen I could just walk away from this," Wells said.
“When we left, we really felt like we were leaving our hearts down here with the people," said Jordan, 22. “There was a night we all just cried because we wanted to come back. Just knowing that there are people down here suffering and that we can make a difference even if it is one room or one house at a time…"
“Operation Blessing has made it a safe place with great housing, food and safety tools. We are really appreciative that we can do the work safely. The people who donate to Operation Blessing should know that their money is going to a great, great thing and we appreciate it so much," Jordan added. “Honestly, after spring break, I don't know if I would want to spend a vacation in any other way."
How You Can Help
Operation Blessing has committed to staying in New Orleans until July 2007, but we need your partnership to make it happen.
Be a part of OBI's ongoing disaster relief efforts by making an
online donation to help those affected by the Gulf Coast hurricanes. For volunteer opportunities click here.
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