Katrina Anniversary

Sunday, Sept 4, 2005 - the first Sunday after Katrina - I was preaching out at Lake Murray. The sermon included a description of the devastation Katrina left behind, at least what we knew from the news. I had not seen it, had no idea how bad it really was. But I knew that as Christians, we had to respond - with prayer, with food and water, with money, and with our own hands.

Fast forward to December 28 - we arrived in Ocean Springs, MS to spend the next 4 weeks as long term volunteers. We worked with other volunteers at Christus Victor Lutheran Church (http://www.christusvictor.com/ ), some days as many as 250 volunteers. We saw first hand the devastation on the Gulf Coast - clothes hanging 20 feet in the air on tree branches, house foundations or pilings with no house left, and we met many, many people who had no home, no food, and were fast running out of hope.

Fast forward again to this weekend. We participated in an anniversary commemoration at Bethel Lutheran Church in Biloxi, MS. We met several pastors who had lived through Katrina, who shared stories of the storm, and the first several weeks after Katrina. We heard several people remember friends and family who lost their lives, or their homes, to Katrina. We heard the fear in their voices when Ernesto was mentioned - no one was prepared for another storm - not even a small one. They know that the infrastructure is still fragile, they know that their FEMA trailers won't withstand much of a storm, and they don't have anything else.

Tonight, sitting in Mobile and knowing how much damage there was on the Gulf Coast, we watched the NBC anniversary special - which only covered New Orleans. What about the rest of the Gulf Coast? What about their stories? Even here in Alabama, there are families in FEMA trailers, trying to figure out how to rebuild. They had damage from Ivan, then Katrina destroyed what was left, then Rita rubbed salt in the wound.

Much has been done. One of the larger casinos is re-opening in Biloxi this weekend. While I am not a fan of legalized gambling, I am in favor of the hundreds of jobs that the opening brings. Driving through Long Beach and Biloxi yesterday, there are still many, many homes and businesses that have yet to be touched.

President Bush was in Biloxi today - a photo op as 40 families received new homes. We saw the Governor of Alabama last week - another photo op as another shrimp boat was launched in Bayou la Batre. Recovery is happening - a little bit each day, but only a small dent has been put into the recovery. LDR (www.ldr.org) is still predicting 8 years for recovery, and I believe that it is true. Much is left to be done, much help is needed. The saddest part about the anniversary is that most of the volunteer camps are closed due to a lack of volunteers. At the anniversary service in Biloxi, only one volunteer was present. Camp Victor only has a few volunteers; our own LDR site in Bayou la Batre has no volunteers, and none are expected until later in September.

Today, the Gulf Coast breathes a sigh of relief as Ernesto keeps turning more North and the track moves East. In the meantime, the recovery effort continues, one family at a time, one business at a time, a few volunteers at a time.