Good Work in NOLA

November in Louisiana is about as beautiful as you can get in the U.S. Our work party entered the state enveloped in a cool clear night that promised a weekend of pristine dry air a native of the South only dreams of. On this our second small group trip to New Orleans I traveled with Bay Area UU Church members Betty and Lloyd Crockford, and wonderful Methodist and friend Charlotte Cherry. Betty is a retired research administrator and Lloyd is a Senior Engineering Manager with a composites manufacturing company in Houston. Charlotte works at the Baylor College of Medicine, Department of Biochemistry. Betty and Lloyd lived in Baton Rouge for many years and on their suggestion we stopped at Pat's Famous Fisherman's Warf in Henderson. The restaurant sits on the levee bordering the Atchafalya swamp and the food is superb. Back on I10 crossing over the swamp crickets and frogs sing to us as we drive to New Orleans and First Church.

First Unitarian Universalist Church of New Orleans is a large structure consisting of a Sanctuary, Fellowship Hall, and educational wing. Originally built in the fifty's by the First Evangelical Church the building is typical of many Christian Churches of that time with a good brick veneer and plenty of stained glass. The lower half of the building has been gutted due to flood damage. Wall plaster, pulpits, stages, pipe organ, stair wells, and kitchen were all ruined by a month of 4 feet of standing water. In the fellowship hall heavy oak doors line the south wall waiting for varnish and in the sanctuary choir loft lay stacks of oak planking that were once its pews.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Baton Rouge (UCBR) formed the Hurricane Relief and Social Justice Project (HRSJP) in October 2005 and it is supported by UUA/UUSC Gulf Coast Relief Fund, and many other donations to their Hurricane Relief Fund. With volunteer assistance from the HRSJP and funding from the Gulf Coast Relief Fund, the second floor of First Unitarian Universalist Church of New Orleans has been painted, re-wired, and renovated to serve as the UU volunteer center. It includes a kitchen built by volunteers. Offices for the church are now located on the second floor as well, and when large volunteer groups come in, (30 or more), they stay in the Fellowship Hall downstairs. The lower floors are bare, stripped down to the studs, but the place is neat with storage space for tools, safety equipment, chairs and tables for meetings, working showers, and as of October honest to god hot water. The HRSJP is led by Reverend Marilee Baccich, Project Director and Cheré Coen, Volunteer Coordinator, and supported by the HRSJP steering committee of UCBR. These dedicated UU's have organized over 525 UU's in the field representing 75 congregations from 25 States over the past year, with several returning more than once. UCBR volunteers, called the Weekend Warriors, go down to New Orleans once a month and have logged over 1000 work hours since their first trip in October 2005. The UU Houston Area Cluster (HAC) logged 720 service hr's in June and BAUUC members have logged 428hrs (300hrs with HAC and 128hrs since September).

Our focus this trip is to continue our work at the Freret Street Community Center. Since May UU's have been steadily working on this project for the Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of New Orleans and according to Shana Sassoon, our coordinator there, we have logged over 1000 hrs. This is a conservative estimate because BAUUC volunteers alone have logged 248 hrs. Only one other group, The Junior League, has volunteered at the center. The last group of UU's have painted the buildings exterior body, most of the interior, and begun the trim work. Friday morning our task is to finish the interior doors and trim and the front exterior trim. The building is a typical New Orleans shotgun duplex built in the late 1890's with 12 foot ceilings, tall double hung windows and a porch with scroll work and finials. Standing on a scaffold Charlotte and I attack the detailed scroll work under the eves while Lloyd finishes the doorframes. Betty takes the interior doors and frames and by the end of the day we have all priming and first coats completed. The building begins to come alive with garish colors unknown to Texas but common in New Orleans. The body of the house is canary yellow, doors are a near royal blue, and the frames and windows a deep ruby red. Interiors are pastel green, yellow, and violet. I am inspired to return home and start throwing paint on my house but my neighbors would probably shoot me.

Friday evening Charlotte made us dinner with 2 casseroles she has brought from home. The board from First Church is having its meeting and we invite them to dinner with us. The congregation consists of about 80 post-Katrina members and they are planning not just to rebuild but to renovate for the future. The Board is cheerful and upbeat. Recently the church has seen some growth with old members returning and some new members. Throughout the weekend there were many meetings in the church and it is comforting to see so much activity. That night Shana invited us to a book release party at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in the 6th ward. The book "Coming Out the Door for the Ninth Ward" is the sixth in a series compiled by The Neighborhood Story Project of New Orleans. The stories in the book are written by the members of the Nine Times Social (Aid) and Pleasure Club and Shana's husband, Abram Himelstein, is the co-director and co-founder story project. Club members gave readings about, sorrows, joys, family, and life in the Desire Housing project. Charlotte wrote "It was an incredible experience, meeting all of the volunteers, meeting the 9th Ward Nine Times, and hearing their side of the story. There is such a national debate about the 9th Ward that nothing but drug dealers and ne'r-do-wells are from there. Then to listen to those citizens tell their stories, that they have culture and values and they owned their own homes in the 9th Ward. That was an incredible moment to be able to hear from them". After the speakers are finished and speeches made the floor of the churches fellowship hall are cleared and the dancing begins. I could swear it's the electric slide they are doing. On Sunday the Nine Times S&P had their first, post-Katrina, traditional "second line" parade through the ward with over 2000 attending.

Later that night I am approached by a gentleman who is signing up people for a virtual town meeting covering 5 states organized by The Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP). With millions of dollars caught up in red tape this is an attempt to present the city with a plan to get things moving. The UNOP website blurb reads "The Citywide Plan will be action-oriented, primarily focused on infrastructure projects designed to hasten the recovery of the City and guide public and private investment decisions. It will have at its core, the guiding principles of the LRA: to help guide and expedite the recovery and rebuilding of a Smarter, Stronger and Safer New Orleans. The prioritized recovery projects of the District Plans will be a component of the Citywide Plan". As a volunteer I have grown weary of pointing fingers and trying to identify who to blame. I, and thousands of others, just want to get things done and we begin with housing and neighborhood organizing. Our hope and prayers go to the UNOP for an equitable success.

Saturday morning we return to Freret Street to finish up. Charlotte and I apply second coats to the trim work while Lloyd removes a sink & cabinet and Betty finishes her doors and paints the bathroom. Windows are scraped and cleaned and the front façade starts to really brighten up. Betty and Lloyd prune the Crape Myrtle in the front. Lloyd chuckles and states that the beauty of doing the finish work on a project is that you get to take all the credit. I smile at that because many times I do not have time to complete a chore when I visit and this is a very fulfilling moment. Our BAUUC/HAC youth began this project in May and after six months it is nearing completion. Shana has scheduled 2 open houses in January to welcome residents. Meetings begin soon after to design programming, possibly a soil remediation workshop, and a volunteer day for the yard.

That evening we go to dinner with friends of Betty and Lloyds and return to find a group of 10 adults and 16 youth from the First Universalist Church in Rockland Maine had arrived for a week long service action. The trip was originally inspired by their youth and together with one other UU community they had raised over $18000.00 for expenses and donations. We sit and talk about what they can expect and the needs of the city. A kind woman across the table begins to get teary as she talks and thinks of the injustice and heartbreak done to the displaced people of New Orleans. I want to tell to her go out there with a smile and find joy at the pleasure of doing good work here. To revel in the life changing experiences she and her youth will have this week. But I do not have to, she will, and she dose. Member Sharon Osborn reported the group gutted 7 houses, began rebuilding (sheetrock and painting) 2 previously gutted homes, and prepared Thanksgiving Dinner at the St. George's Episcopal Dragon Café Food Pantry. Every where they went the good people of New Orleans spoke with them and thanked them. Let's see, with 26 volunteers working 8hrs a day for five days add another 1040 hrs of UU service to the list. What great, good work.

John McCorquodale, December 2006