The Shorthorn ran an article on the New Orleans trip
& Huffington Post College featured the New Orleans ASB trip as one of the Top 8 ASB trips!

So awesome & exciting!

What have you done since returning to Arlington to increase publicity about Katrina’s kids?

Watch a video on youtube posted by our volunteer coordinator, Amanda, in August 2009. She does a great job of talking about her experience volunteering & then moving to New Orleans. She told us these stories the other night, as well as gave us some information about the people that she works with here. The crime rate is increasing at astronomical rates since Katrina. There are already 23 murders this year. Most murders are under 23! There have not been playgrounds rebuilt, or any places for kids to play, so they play in the streets around the crime! The rebuilding was so necessary right after the storm, but now they’re realizing how the people have been hurt in so many other ways. Instances of ADHD & PTSD are rising, especially in children. Amanda reminded us that the work we’re doing with individual kids is important, but more important is showing the city that we CARE about it’s PEOPLE. She said that New Orleans was physically built up by volunteers, & now the people need to be rebuilt by us, as well

(Here is information about the exhibit that she mentioned – how inspirational!)

Our last day has finally come after what seems to have been the fastest week I have ever experienced. It amazes me how such a short time span is capable of changing a lifetime of thoughts, hopes and opinions.

The culture is beautiful and spirit of the city is as present as I could have imagined it but the devastation is still lingering. You may not be able to take a powerful picture of it like a staircase to nowhere left in the 9th ward where a family might have ran up and down but you can FEEL it in the work we do. The locals are strong in their faith but there is no other way for them to be! Our students were born in the midst of an insecure moment that is still present and they have no idea what “stable” really means. We kept saying, “They need love, they need to be spoken to gently, they need to play and be kids” but we weren’t realizing until the end how much of what we were saying was so unrealistic. How can you give love and calm a child who has only known chaos when you’ve never had the closure on why your house had 10 feet of water? How can you say it was 7 years ago and the people are fine? These kids are growing up in a time that parents are working more jobs so they can start again, when the parents are too tired to cuddle and play and when these adults haven’t been shown how to cope with the loss and confusion they have. Katrina wasn’t the damage, it was the beginning of a challenge.

Each person I have spoken with says, “The levies were weak and we knew it but we don’t leave. We never do. Katrina was God’s way of saying leave now so we could save more people and we did.” These people have faced vicious and horrible tragedies but they are strong and some are trying to stop the “chaos generation” from becoming another kid shooting and gang-banger. The teachers at our schools have been so kind to us and let us become part of their world and then THANKED us for it. We have left feeling like we should be thanking them.

I’ve grown in so many different ways and have been challenged on my schema of people and locations in a way that was very uncomfortable. So uncomfortable, that I fell in love with it and hope to come back. New Orleans get’s in your heart and makes it dance in the streets! How could I not come back? How could I not care for those beautiful babies and how can I go home to leave this week as just a memory of a really awesome city? I can’t! None of us can which is why we are dragging about packing, hoping the day is long and so sad we’ll all part into our seperate lives soon but we will always have NOLA and have even said we’ll one day move back. See you soon NOLA! Goodbye for now!

Now that the kids know us better (& have funny nicknames for us, too!) we’re starting to have funnier stories in the classroom.Some of the teachers, too, are starting to take more of an interest in our group. The teachers at Peace bought crawfish for the volunteers.

The Hope teachers told the volunteers about all the great things to do in New Orleans and even gave advice for the voodoo shop areas to see and avoid! Some of the teachers at C-D started talking a little bit more about their frustrations. It is strange that some classes are missing a lot of students while some today were entirely full. It seems like there isn’t a lot of consistency

We all agree that the culture of this area has contributed greatly to our experiences in the schools. We visited the French Quarter this afternoon & just took in the sights.

We bad more beignets & cafe au lait, & ate muffaletta, seafood, & crawfish to the sounds of a live jazz band in the French Market

We had another busy day, but finally it was primarily rain-free! We were in charge of making sure the community center was clean for the day, which didn’t end up being too difficult of a task, but was a focus every time we were there. 5 volunteers went to the zoo with our school from 9:30am-1pm – what a long but fun day for the kids!

The other schools enjoyed their days, whether it was talks with the teachers or having fun with the kids! We went back & tried to nap after school, after cleaning the facility a bit, & then we enjoyed some jambalaya! A non-profit from down the road from the community center came & asked for volunteers to help build picnic tables for the mentally and physically challenged students, & our resident engineering student took measurements & drew up a great plan.

We headed off to Magazine Street to get delicious gelato, & we “oooh” & “ahh” at the great houses on St Charles!

On the way back we talked about our Roses & Thorns for the day – what a simply way to learn so much.

Roses

• How comfortable the kids were with us today
• How interested the teachers were in our lives
• How much fun we had at the zoo fieldtrip
• How the kids were just SO EXCITED to see us
• A great conversation with the older sister of a student (who went on the field trip)
• Getting to love on the kids when the teachers were ignoring them or being angry

Thorns:

• Seeing the Ninth Ward  – so many bare lots & stoops in what used to be a vibrant neighborhood
• The argument at the one school (parents (& some teachers) bought the kids food & souvenirs at the zoo when the policy does not allow it, & they were reprimanded when they got back to the school)
• Hearing that one boy’s dad is in jail & the other’s is deceased
• Having a parent get irate when they walked into the classroom & saw a volunteer & assumed she was the PD or CPS
• Teachers cussing in front of the kids

We continued the conversation long after parking the car, just talking about the cycle of poverty & low education that can happen after people have poor examples growing up. The teachers work hard & have VERY DIFFICULT jobs, but we find their discipline strategies strange, as well as feel some of them are inappropriate. But we also can’t imagine dealing with the situation day-in-&-day-out. Many of the teachers are currently studying to get their Bachlors degree, & we’re wondering if their teachers & parents set the same example for them when they were growing up. It seems like a lot of the teachers don’t have much hope for the kids, so it’s almost like we’re trying to have a positive influence on the kids AND the teachers. Basically, there are a lot of things that surprise us from the trip. We expected to be influenced by the kids, but didn’t realize the challenges that would come from the teachers, neighborhoods, city, culture, living experience, and the other schools would have on us.

We are excited to spend the evening in the French Quarter for dinner tomorrow night. As mentioned, I feel like we’re getting a lot out of the WHOLE experience, not just working directly with Katrina’s kids.

So, our first full day in New Orleans has come to an end. We started our day with a quick & efficient breakfast with 155 of our closest friends, & we were off to our 3 locations. We navigated our way through New Orleans traffic, & then Griselda & Erin went to Peace Head Start, Alysia & Bianca went to Hope Head Start, & Amir (Mr. A), Raegan (R-A-E-G-A-N), Daisy, Yara, & Sara went to Carrollton-Dunbar Head Start. We reconvened after lunch & naptime, & headed out in the rain to the French Quarter, where we walked along the foggy Mississippi & got beignets & cafe au lait/hot chocolate at Cafe du Monde. Dinner was at ACF – red beans & rice are served on Mondays in New Orleans because Mondays used to be the days that they did the washing, & it was easy to put on a pot of red beans all day!

After two rainy long days, we decided to stay in this evening. We got settled, took showers, & talked about our day. We had a great discussions describing our day in colors, emotions, and animals. We all agreed that describing the kids at school like “puppies” was the best descriptions. They’re always jumping for our attention, moving in front of us wherever we are standing, scrambling on top of each other, & showing off.

There were some other things that stood out to us about our first day in the Head Start centers. We were surprised at how well-adjusted some of the kids seemed, while others were stubborn. We didn’t expect the teachers to be so loud & get so angry. Some of the teachers were really open & interested in our lives – most did not understand we were in New Orleans for the purpose of volunteering. We were unsure of how to approach them about Katrina, if at all. Some already took the route of asking blunt questions about their experiences. The teachers boldly told their stories & were happy. Others did not mention Katrina because they didn’t want to make anyone feel like they were solely victims, like they couldn’t move on from the storm. Others took cues from the teachers & asked follow up-questions during our conversations that led to hearing stories about the storm, or relocating, or evacuating, or spending the week in the Superdome.

All in all, it was a busy, productive, and eventful day. One of the most shocking things to everyone was going to the French Quarter after spending the day in low income areas. It was so rich, affluent, and touristy, & just minutes down the road from some of the lowest income schools in the country. Some of us almost felt guilty sitting there enjoying beignets after coming from these neighborhoods. We did realize that this happens all around the world – juxtaposition of wealth, sometimes extremely drastic

It’s a rainy night in New Orleans, & we’re playing cards now & getting ready to head to bed. Hope all is well in Texas! For the next four days we’ll give recaps of our schools so that you all can experience

Just a quick iPhone update since we don’t have wifi yet. We’re excited to be here with 155 other alternative breaks volunteers! We’re staying in St Bernard Parish, the only parish (county) in US to ever be destroyed 100%. We learned some facts about this during our orientation by “pastor Randy” last night

Katrina/Rita disaster in St Bernard parish affected about:

70,000 people

26,900 homes

3,00 business

Countless schools, fire houses, hospitals

Everyone was affected, everything was uninhabitable. People returned to live in tents & pass out food. There was no food, water, electricity. The parish had been under  10-28ft of water – can you imagine?! We saw lots of pictures & some were moved to tears. We even heard a shocking story of a Habitat for Humanity rebuild project gone wrong, where sheet rock that was donated emitted a chemical when it touched metal that made about 20 families very sick. As Pastor Randy put it — they were just tired of the bad news

He refused to be called a hero after alllll he’d done & insisted the volunteers are the heroes of Katrina. He said they’re so happy were still remembering NOLA 7 years later, because the city is not just fun, but “vital”

Our group had a great discussion about our expectations for the group, the week, & ourselves. We also talked a little bit about what we remember from the time of Katrina, if anything. We had a long drive, busy day & night, & I just know we’re going to have a GREAT week

We are heading to New Orleans on Sunday to experience the city, the food, the people, the hospitality, and to give of ourselves to help those affected by the devastating hurricane years ago. Even though so many areas are built up, with no signs of the destruction, we will soon find out that evidence lingers everywhere.

As we all know, we are headed there specifically to work with children who were born into families and areas affected by hurricane Katrina. Below are some links to articles about why it’s important to remember Katrina’s Kids

Katrina’s Children – A Call to Consciousness and Action

Trauma shapes Katrina’s Kids

Katrina’s Kids

Mental Strain Weighing on Katrina’s Kids

Hi all! We had our last group ASB meeting yesterday, & tomorrow we are meeting at 3pm in the San Jacinto!

PACKING CHECKLIST
___ Jeans
___ Shirts
___ UTA T-Shirts
___ Shorts
___ Hat (optional)
___ Long Sleeved Shirt
___ Socks
___ Underwear
___ Sleepwear
___ Sunscreen
___ Shower Shoes
___ Face Towel
___ Bath Towel
___ Medicine
___ Bathing Suit (optional)
___ Jacket/Sweatshirt
___ Rain jacket or umbrella
___ Sleeping Bag or Twin sheet set
___ Pillow & Pillowcase
___ Mosquito Repellant
___ Water bottle (for use at work site)
___ State-Issued ID
___ Health insurance card
___ Schoolwork (if you have any)
___ Little to no valueables
___ Money Belt or Fanny Pack or Small Backpack
___ Cash for meals
___ Close toed Shoes (hard-soled)
___ Toiletries (unscented)
*Please make sure that your toiletries (soap, lotion, toner, aftershave, moisturizer, and deodorant), insect repellant, and sunscreen are unscented. This will help minimize insect bites.

Weather forecast (as of 3/8)

Sunday March 11
Slight chance of a thunderstorm. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the upper 60s.

Monday March 12
A few thunderstorms possible. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the upper 60s.

Tuesday March 13
Partly cloudy, chance of a thunderstorm. Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the upper 60s.

Wednesday March 14
Partly cloudy. Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the mid 60s.

Thursday March 15
Considerable cloudiness. Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the low 60s.

Friday March 16
Clouds giving way to sun . Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the low 60s.

Saturday March 17
Occasional showers possible. Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the mid 60s.

Still a few blog posts to make (since we lost WIFI at the end of last week), but I hope you all are enjoying your Monday…. it’s surely different from last Monday, our first days on the “job”!

Yesterday was a day of rest & reflection (& laundry!) for me, as I’m sure it was for the other ASB participants. It feels great to get back to a routine, but I can surely say that that routine will be a little different for me now.

Like I said, there’s a post from the Carrollton-Dunbar group still to come (be looking for an email from me, Breanna/Destiny/Sophia!) & I’m sure we’ll post some picture, but I’ll leave you with a Notes From the Universe quote that sums up the goal that I think we all accomplished last week:

First, choose from the options that thrill you.
Then, choose the ones that also teach you.
And from these, choose the scariest.
Butterflies in your tummy are good