Putting the Shuck on a Yankee

I know that the teachers of St. Bernard Parish are honest and trustworthy, but...... There is an old tradition in the area, tied to the "King Cake." A King Cake is a large coffee cake in northern parlance, and is very popular around Mardi Gras. It is baked in a large oval shape, about sixteen inches long and ten inches wide. The difference between this and a coffee cake is that a king cake has a small plastic baby baked into every one.

As slices are passed out, someone ends up getting the slice with the plastic baby. The tradition demands that the person who gets the baby must supply the king cake for the next event. Well the eleven teachers of fourth grade saw to it that a huge King Cake was present when I ate lunch with them the second time.


And what to my wondering eyes should appear but a cute, little baby peeking out from the side of my slice. He was pulled out for the picture. Speculation abounds as to how.... out of eleven participants...... the Columbus Yankee ended up with the responsibility to buy the next cake.

What's Left of My Neighborhood

A major life-changing decision is whether one is able or has the desire to return to their former homes and neighborhoods after Katrina. All but three of the homes in Chalmette, which once had 65,000 residents, were flooded. Everyone has to make the decision. First the homes had to be gutted completely because in most cases the entire home was submerged up to the ceiling of the first floor. The process involves passing an inspection to determine if the house is solid enough to rebuild, then gutting it down to the two by fours; then spraying the chemicals to kill the "stuff" that grows under these conditions.

Mold is a constant concern, since the water stood in the house for weeks. Owners entered the houses (with permission) wearing boots, rubber gloves and masks. The trick was to put some Vicks or other analgesic under your nose, to help you withstand the stench. All refrigerators were ruined, and the instructions were to tape them shut, never open them, and put them out on the street for pick up. Those that did not heed the advice on not opening were greeted by a stench which they will never forget. The National Guard got high marks for helping in these endeavors, as did countless church groups and volunteers from across the country. The Federal government is not given high marks, given the unbelievable red tape which is placed in the way of an applicant has been unbelievable.

The bigger question was one of options. The insurance industry is balking on payments because of arguments whether the damage was flood, or wind or whatnot, money was in short supply for most home owners. Speculators are offering $20,000 for houses which were appraised at $160,000 pre-Katrina. Many don't have any choice but to rebuild, because of the economics of the situation. There isn't enough cash from the sale of their homes plus any insurance payments to build a similar home anywhere else. Many, over half, have decided not to return to the city, and have sold to speculators or simply walked away.

The second daunting question is, "who else is going to be in the neighborhood?" The number of vacant lots is staggering, and the number of former residents who will eventually restore the gutted hulks in the neighborhood hangs in the air. Put your self in their shoes. Even if the house is paid for, there isn't enough in the bank to build a home somewhere else, which would cost fifty percent more. Drive down a street, and you are greeted by the scene above - Block after block after block of empty shells and lots which have been cleared down to the building slabs. The school where your children attended is no longer there (11 of 13 are gone). Gutted wrecks, as seen below, still stand.

These pictures were not selected for their shock value. The questions discussed above were the ones shared with me by many residents. "Do I want to be the first one to move back into a neighborhood, which has only one house out of fifty still inhabitable?" "Will my friends and neighbors return?" "Will the neighborhood ever have the same "feel" it had before the storm?" "Will the commercial establishments return, so I will be able to purchase the goods and services I need?" All legitimate questions/

Life in the FEMA Trailer

Bear in mind getting a FEMA from the government was a Herculean task of red tape, long lines, and utter frustration. Nevertheless, they are the saving grace for those who want to undergo the long process of gutting and then rebuilding their homes. This process for many has already run seventeen months, so life in the trailer can be a huge mental strain on the entire family. Picture your family in the 8' x 24' trailer, and plan your activities for the evening.

Let's see...... Jane, you sit there and do your homework, while Jack.... you try to take a nap back there in the bunk beds past the refrigerator. Harry, will you see if you can store the groceries somewhere, while I get this roast in the microwave. I'm sorry that there is no television, but the radio was good enough for our grandparents. Did you ever hear Brace Beemer portray the Lone Ranger?

Or, after dinner...... Let's kick back and relax on the couch a while before turning in. We have only been here for seventeen months, and the contractor says the house could be finished by July (weather permitting). Does anyone know where we put the broom?

Feeling frisky honey? Let's climb into the spacious master suite a little early tonight. First, I'm going to have a nice soak in the 18" x 40" tub. There were no end of "tub stories" exchanged at a lunch with the fourth grade teachers. One shared her methodology for using the tub. First, you kneel in the center of the small vessel, then cross your ankles behind you, then...... Well, you get the idea. Despite the hardships, I was constantly amazed at the good humor exhibited by the teachers at Andrew Jackson. My few days in one of these units could give me a sense of size, but never the effect of the long term exposure to the claustrophobic conditions when one shares it with a family of four for better than a year an one half.

Trip Down Main Street - Judge Perez Parkway

All of the reading and watching of the television pictures never prepared me for the extent of the destruction. Here we are almost a year and a half later, and there is a celebration if one store opens up. The Judge Perez Parkway is the main artery through St. Bernard Parish, and connects the parish with the city of New Orleans. Here the destruction is virtually complete, and almost no businesses have reopened. I have just shown a few pictures, but the road goes on for miles.

The stores that do open, have a terrible time finding help because there is no place to live. It is Catch 22 all over again. In the entire town there are only a few restaurants open, there is no hospital because it was so damaged it had to be demolished. The same is true for the medical center where most of the doctors maintained offices. The traffic lights are sporadic even today, and many makeshift stop sign supports serve as traffic control.

The Lighter Side At Andrew Jackson Elementary

We started the day by distributing the cases of supplies to the other ten fourth grade teachers. In all we had 19.5 cases in my van, plus the several drop shipments. Donna Schultz was releasing some of the supplies each day, and each of the releases was fun to watch. One of the releases was two sets of books - The Hardy Boy series and the Nancy Drew series. These classics were a real treat. library for Andrew Jackson is still not set up for use. Lot's of great comments from the kids about these books donated by friends in Columbus, Ohio.

Then it was turn-about, as the class and Mrs. Schultz presented me with a great gift basket of Mardi Gras supplies, including a hat and beads to go along with the food stuffs to prepare all the New Orleans, classical food favorites. The yellow bag is for the kids in Mrs. Dicke's class. It contains a whole lot of Mardi Gras beads from one of the professional groups which marches in the big parade.
A special basket was given to me to deliver to Mrs. Dicke, and in includes the traditional Mardi Gras food stuffs along with a tiara to wear with her Mardi Gras outfit this year. I'll have to find a UPS store here, so I can get it into her hands for the parade.


The kids had a special assembly today from a group know as the Islenos (meaning islanders). In 1762 Louis XIV gave Louisiana to his cousin, Charles III, King of Spain. He did so to keep the English from getting their hands on it. In 1777 Bernard Galvez was sent to protect and govern Louisiana (St. Bernard Parish is named for him), and he brought eight shiploads of Canary Island inhabitants (2,031) and more followed.


These people have lived in the area ever since, and have maintained much of their culture. They aided in the overthrow of the British from Louisiana through Florida, and later became the Captain General of Louisiana and Florida, as well as Viceroy of Mexico. In the assembly several of the Islenos people presented information on their culture to the kids. Note the infamous "blue tarp" being used as a floor in they gymnasiam in the picture.

Day Two at Andrew Jackson Elementary

Mrs. Donna Schultz, pictured below at her desk, is one great lady! While living in an 8' x 24' FEMA trailer for the past seventeen months, she has started school at night to work on her Master's degree; while she and her husband are rebuilding their home and raising their special-needs, 16-year old son. How she keeps so upbeat amid the complexities of post-Katrina life in St. Bernard Parish is a mystery to mere mortals like me.

Her class is filled with 26 kids who can tell story after story regarding their experiences with Katrina, and any one is capable of curling your hair. One boy related how he and his family clung to a light pole for hours during the storm, afraid that they would "go flying" if they let go. Winds were 100 - 140 mph in the area, as the waters reached the second floor of the schools and office buildings. 65,000 people lived in this area, and only three of their homes escaped the flood waters after the levees broke. Water in the downtown area reached 20 to 30 feet. Most residential areas had from 14 to 20 feet of water, and the peak depths lasted for three days. Several feet of water remained for weeks.

School appears to be an island of normalcy in the Chalmette area of St. Bernard Parish. As mentioned previously, the Andrew Jackson (public) Elementary School combines the seven elementary schools which existed prior to Katrina. None survived! AJE also has the preschool kids down to the age of three, so things are hopping in this 2,000 student facility. Workers did an outstanding job of opening this school, and the walls and ceilings show no evidence of the water levels that existed in the area for weeks.

With 2,000 students arriving at the same time, traveling through a minefield of abandon neighborhoods, on streets where only a few traffic lights are working and using a single driveway - traffic control can be a nightmare. However, they have it down to a science and it all seems to work flawlessly. Cooperation and patience have become the watchword in this town.

These are the FEMA trailers which are spotted on the grounds of the school and reserved for teachers and school personnel. All over town there are FEMA trailer parks like this, only most are much larger. FEMA trailers are also spotted on home owner's lots when they plan to rebuild their homes. 24' x 8' is the standard size. For my few nights in trailer #AJ-16 this was enough room, but it is very tight for families. "Trailer stories" abound, wherever two or three are gathered.

First Day in Chalmette, near New Orleans

Chalmette is the first suburb east of the infamous 9th ward of New Orleans, reached from this exit off I-10. From this exit, it is just a few miles south to the downtown area of Chalmette. The road is only a few feet above the ever present water, and there are countless remnants of Katrina along the way: overturned boats, semi trailers in the water, skeletons of buildings, twisted billboards and a few businesses proudly proclaiming, "WE'RE BACK!"

The city center is bisected by a street which runs east and west into New Orleans, and the shopping center pictured here is typical of what is left standing - not a single store remains in this area where 20 to 30 feet of water drowned the city.

This home is located across the street from the totally-destroyed, soon to be demolished home owned by Donna Schultz's Mother. The man who owns this house did extensive rescue work in the neighborhood using a wave runner. His house, located just a few blocks from the Andrew Jackson Elementary School, was totally under water.

Some residents have moved into FEMA trailers parked next to their homes while they are trying to rebuild them. This home is a few blocks from the school. Note the portable pump, one of many around the area.

This is Andrew Jackson Elementary School, where our donations are going. The children from seven destroyed elementary schools are now bused here. The school was the first to be put back in service, although it sits in a neighborhood that is totally destroyed. The FEMA trailers are mostly used by teachers, although I'll move into #16 tomorrow. #16 was just vacated by a teacher who is able to move into a new home.

Donna Schultz met me at the trailer, and we were able to off load seventeen cases of supplies, which complement the several shipments we have made so far.

I could post hundreds of heart breaking pictures, but the story would not change. The survivors are trying to restore some semblance of normal life, but it will be a long time in coming. Donna Schultz and her fellow teachers are doing a wonderful job, working under unbelievable conditions. They certainly deserved the support we have given them so far.