Volunteer Stories
We are truly grateful to all the volunteers who have shared themselves with our community! Parkway extends a special thanks to those who have contributed their reflections. We pray that they will touch the hearts of everyone who reads them.
God Builds the Home
Gary Weaver, May 2007
Pueblo Presbytery, Pueblo, Colorado
We were very impressed by the warm hospitality of the people of Parkway
Presbyterian! Also, very well organized in a time without pastoral
leadership is a commentary on the commitment of the congregation to this
very important mission project. We felt very good about our small
contribution to this massive project and are keenly aware that some
have built the foundation, others the walls, still others the roof . . .
but God builds the home.
So Much Bigger
Anonymous, May 2007
Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania
I have made several trips to the area and am amazed to see the improvement
over the last year. I am honored to work with PDA and see your commitment
to the recovery of New Orleans.
It's always hard to let go of a job when you've invested a significant
amount of time and sweat but exciting to know that we've been part of
something so much bigger than ourselves.
Everything He Asked
Anonymous, May 2007
Abiding Savior Lutheran Church, Independence, Missouri
I have spent the past few days doing things I've never done before, been hot
and sweaty and covered in sheet rock dust, paint and sweat and it has been one
of the best experiences of my life. When we told the homeowner we had one piece
of sheet rock left to hang and would he please check and make sure we had done
everything he asked, I thought he was going to cry he was so overwhelmed. We
helped him get one step closer to moving back into his home. It is something
I will never forget.
Pass It On
Elizabeth Ebanks, April 2007
First Presbyterian Church, Conroe, Texas
Having experienced Hurricane Ivan, a category five, I felt I was called to this
New Orleans mission. My personal experience, in the Cayman Islands, changed my
life, and my prayer is that, in some small way, our team impacted love and caring
for another hurricane victim. Just as we survived Ivan and received help from others,
we could pass it on to another -- one by one.
Seeing this New Orleans home on the first day of our trip reminded me of a flood
of sad, heartbreaking memories. I can identify with New Orleans. Seeing the
completion of our labors of four days made me so proud. When I left the house,
I felt I was leaving an old friend.
Great Impact
Rick Warren, March 2007
Knox Presbyterian Church, Naperville, Illinois
What surprised me most was that the people who were not being helped by our
crew(s) were still keeping at it. They were working hard, not resentful or
discouraged that concentrated effort wasn't directed toward their home.
The work we did was primarily "home-owner" grade activity. If a "job's a job"
then the hours we spent would have had to be spent by the homeowner by
his/herself. So our crew of 16, in effect, did in three days work a week's
worth of effort. So great impact could be made, even more so since some jobs
take more than two people. So our team could be less efficient, but still get
lots done. Also since we were fresh, we were able to work all-out without the
need to worry about energy/enthusiasm for enxt week, next month or next year.
I learned people are tougher than they seem, that they have more compassion
than they thought they had, that they could work harder on someone else's
home than they might on their own, and that you could see on them the face of
Christ through the sweat and the dust.
The Lord Will Provide
Marge McMahon, March 2007
Hinsdale Central High School, Hinsdale, Illinois
I was very surprised at how secure I felt at all the work sites. Neighbors were
very friendly and quite helpful.
Personally my life has changed. I have gained a deep appreciation of all these
victims have gone through. It has also renewed my faith in the adage that the
lord will provide. Each time something was needed what was needed fell right
into place i.e. paint being available, doors suddenly 1/2 price, the waste crew
appearing to take away the trash.
The work was hard, but at the end of the day the tired was a good feeling.
A House Transformed
Anonymous, March 2007
Grand Valley State University, Allendale, Michigan
I loved the work project I was a part of. My group worked wth an elderly woman
and did some deep cleaning throughout the house. We got to spend a lot of time
with her and she was really thankful for our help. I really enjoyed being able
to tear up her old floor and it was awesome to see her house being transformed
throughout the week and seeing the finished product at the end.
Side by Side
Ashley Connell, February 2007
Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, Virginia
I think that it will take some time for me to process everything that has
occurred in the last week for me. I have never experienced anything remotely
like what the people of New Orleans have experienced, nor can I even begin to
understand what it must feel like to lose everything, as the family we worked
with did. Yet being here, and working side by side these people allowed me to
feel like I could in some small way share in their struggle and help counteract
all the grief they've experienced with a little bit of something good.
Understanding and Patience
Anonymous, February 2007
First Presbyterian Church, Ann Arbor, Michigan
I really enjoyed working. Gutting houses is hard work but when we finished it
was great. I had seen the lower 9th ward before working on the house in
Gentilly--the house resembled many in the 9th ward. Working on the house for
3 days straight and meeting the neighbors really made everything real
to me. I knew before that people were personally affected but still could not
really understand--I think I do a little now.
I think I learned about patience--a lot of the people I talked to were the
most patient about the conditions of their houses or the city in general. I
also learned how laughter really is important--people who lost their whole
house were still able to smile. I think that will stick with me.
Still Caught in the Emotions
Marian, February 2007
First Presbyterian Church, Katonah, New York
I was amazed at how wide the devastation remains 18 months later. The experience
has been unsettling as I don't know how Americans could allow such suffering to
continue--why can we not unite in purpose to support the rebuilding of this area?
How can we get city, state and federal institutions to work together to bring
healing and a return to a more normal life? It feels like many people are still
caught in the emotions of the first months following Katrina. I am awed by the
perseverance of the people here living out each day in hope of a better tomorrow.
It seemed like we did so little, but we were thanked like we had provided some
monumental service. We apprecaite the awesome support of your church--you saw to
all our needs especially emotional when you invited us to eat and worship with
you. Your actions speak volumes, it takes many special volunteers from your
church to provide that support.
Discovering Generosity
Carly W., January 2007
Cascade Christian High School, Puyallup, Washington
This week has been an eye-opening experience. It made me see how greatly
teens need to experience other cultures than their own. It makes you realize
that the universe does not revolve around you. Other cultures and ideas do
exist outside of the small window to the world we see on a consistent basis:
school, work, family, etc. What you discover on trips where you serve others
is priceless. "These people's generosity is impossible to meet," to quote a
very wise woman. They give and give until they have nothing else. And even
when they have nothing else, they share their stories; stories of how
blessed they are to be where they are and how they have survived through it
all. They share their stories. They share their feelings. They share their
food. Every chance they get they share. Nothing but open arms greets you
wherever you go. These people need our help. I see a poster put up in our
room. It says, "No one can do everything, but everyone can do something."
That is so true.
Everyone can do something. Everyone should do something. This trip has
taught me so much. I have learned everything from the name of a sophomore I
didn't know beforehand to how to hang sheet rock and I have seen both, great
and disastrous effects a major disaster has had on an amazing people. They
are so giving. It leads me to question, "Why is every person that is able to
help not helping?" These people would absolutely, without question, be on a
plane going wherever they needed to go to help anyone in need. I have been
invited to come back and stay whenever I could. Everyone in the group has
been invited back. I have made friends with both locals and those I attend
school with, but I just cannot say enough about the people here. No words
can describe this experience. It is one that everyone should have.
Read more stories from Cascade in their group blog
Listen to a song by Rebekah
Finding Bits and Pieces
Amy Nylund, January 2007
West Side Presbyterian Church, Ridgewood, New Jersey
I came to New Orleans for the first time last year and there was nothing that
could keep me away when the opportunity arose again. To see the amount of improvement
is remarkable (tonight I ate off some beautiful china plates at a family's house
that I helped to salvage from molded cupboards last year), although I know there is still
so much work to be done. The first day was probably the hardest, sifting through an
old veteran's belongings, trying to sort between what could be saved and what was
beyond repair. It's strange finding bits and pieces of a person's life almost
destroyed--moldy and untouched. I felt like I knew this man wo well (clearly a
tennis player, collected plates from each U.S. state, must have travelled to
Thailand from his souveniers) even though I really only talked to him for a few
moments. I start to wonder what one would think looking through all of my possessions,
the bits and pieces of my life. Becasue these things that we try to save really are
portions of a person, their memories and past, some hope for the future.
Wonderful Reminders
Susie Bubna, December 2006
Colony Community Church/First Presbyterian Church, Fort Scott, Kansas
This experience helped remind me that we are bound together as fellow Americans
and as human beings. We need each other--as we serve others, we are blessed--
that is really how God's kingdom works. "The Son of Man came not to be served
but to serve."
One of the homeowners Buddy talked to us for a long time about several
years of personally experiencing great loss and suffering, culminating
with the devastation of his home by Katrina. Rather than embittering him,
he told us that the suffering brought him back to his faith in God. Again,
it was a wonderful reminder to me as C. S. Lewis penned, "God whispers to us
in our joy but shouts to us in our pain."
Love Opened My Eyes
Emily Wall, June 2006
Central Presbyterian Church, Omaha, Nebraska
When I found out that this year we were going to New Orleans for our mission trip about a million thoughts
clouded my head. Sadly enough none of these thoughts or feelings included the love I should feel for the
people down there. I thought of heart break, and water, dirt, mold, grime, even the pride I would feel
going down there, where few were willing to go. Most of my feelings were self-righteous and conceited,
after all I had never seen anything so devastating, and how bad could it be? I am only seventeen years
old, and the closest I have ever come to devastation such as this was when my basement flooded two years
ago. I don't want to make it sound as if I didn't care, I watched the news intently for weeks and with
each passing headline I grew angrier and angrier at the position these poor people were left in. But
again, I had never been affected by something so catastrophic, I had no idea how I would react in such a
position. Eventually the news coming from New Orleans grew increasingly brighter and with it so did my
heart. "Wow, things are really looking up down there!" I told myself. Mardi Gras was widely attended
and the French Quarter was up and running. The reports made it sound as if the city had had a big band
aid stuck on it and mommy had given it a big slobbery kiss to make it all better. As we drove into the
city I looked around and things seemed fine, houses stood all around us, there was no standing water,
everything looked just fine. I still held the mentality that these people and I were from different
worlds and that I had no relation to them at all. This mentality was drastically changed that day when
we all piled into the car to head to our first house. The area we arrived in was completely abandoned.
As we stepped out into the street and took our first look at our first project it started to rain. As
it rained most of us began to cry as we stared around at the devastation surrounding us.
In that moment, as we stood hiding from the rain, the connection occurred; we became a part of that community. Each house that we looked at, each abandoned car, each discarded toy was our own.
It was as if we had been there, as if these were our houses. As the week went on and our work progressed
that sense of connection to the community grew. We met new people and heard their stories and as time
passed we were slowly being integrated into the community. By being there and helping, by sitting and
talking and laughing with these people they became like family, at least to me. In a way these people
felt like my family. Not in a sense that I had lived with them my whole life and knew every detail of
theirs, but in that I could feel the pain they had gone through, what they were still going through.
When we reached our final house on Thursday we were particularly nervous because for the first time we
would be working side by side with the owner of this house. I expected this man to be morose and full
of sorrow at the losses he had suffered; I was surprised when he greeted us with a smile and a handshake.
He was glad to have us there and I am sure all of us were glad to be working with him as well. This
demonstrates yet again the strong sense of unity that is felt in New Orleans. Everyone who was in any
way connected to that hurricane now has a bond I have never witnessed. People you would never dream of
meeting become great friends. In a way I would say that the connection that is felt down there is one
of love, not only the love of what was lost but the love of what remains, and the people that remain.
Working as a group and opening my heart to these people brought me closer to God than I have been in a
very long time. This sense of familial love and friendship allowed me to open my eyes to God. This
feeling was amazing and I hope to carry it with me through the rest of my life. Looking back I realize
that it is because I loved these people and had my heart opened to them that I feel so close to God. I
gained two families that week, this amazing group of friends, and the city of New Orleans.
Read more stories from Central (PDF document).
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Selected Reflections
Stephanie Matteson, May-June 2006
Midway Presbyterian Church, Gilby, North Dakota
I guess it seems like our work was so small compared to what needs to be done. But, I hope that just by us being there and willing to do what we could that people know that others care about them, and haven’t forgotten them. I also hope that we presented ourselves well and in a positive way to people there. I know sometimes some of us were a little impatient, but it wasn’t meant to be in a bad way. We just wanted to get as much done as possible while we were there.
. . .
It reminds me to really appreciate my home and what I have and family & friends, because it can be taken away so easily. Even though a person knows that, it’s good to be reminded about that. We get complacent about our lives sometimes, so I think it’s good to get a wake-up call to reality sometimes.
26 Pre-Schoolers & 12 Chairs
Barb Black, April 2006
Herndon United Methodist Church, Herndon, Virginia
Can you imagine trying to teach 26 little children in a room (shared with another teacher and her class) and the only, ONLY things you have in your room for your entire class, are 12 little chairs? And then, can you imagine being moved from classroom to classroom (in different locations), 3 previous times and this is now your final resting place? And then, can you imagine on top of that, that all 26 of these little children were rescued by helicopter from the roofs or balconies from their homes during the hurricane? And finally, every time when it now rains, thunders, storms, etc. these 26 little ones start crying and become upset due to the fear that it might be another Katrina? I have great difficulty re-telling this story, even though I’ve told it several times in the past few days. My eyes well up with tears and I get this lump in my throat that just won’t go away. Sadly, this story is very, very true. We CANNOT forget the people in New Orleans. Their stories must be told many, many times until life is somewhat normal again for them. I urge you all to get involved with prayers, time, donations and money. They will continue to need us and our support for many years to come.
Read more stories from Herndon
Serving Christ in New Orleans
Jeneane Ryan, March 2006
Knox Presbyterian Church, Naperville, Illinois
We began as a group of 22, many of whom did not know each other, and we returned a week later as brothers and sisters. Our mission was clear, to serve Christ in New Orleans. We knew that this would be a life changing experience, but never to the depth it has touched us. We received so much more than we were able to give. The members of Parkway Presbyterian Church in Metairie received us with warm southern hospitality, genuine gratitude, and wrapped us in their love. Our week began with helping twelve members of the Parkway community who had been affected by Katrina. Whether it was moving debris, building patios, cleaning, or painting, we worked side by side with the homeowners who made us feel like family. The end of the week, the entire group went to First Presbyterian Church in New Orleans. While landscaping around the church, cars would drive by, honk their horns, and thank us for coming. As we scraped columns and walls to remove the muck, mud and mold, we helped Rev. Cliff Nunn and his church begin to return to some degree of normalcy. With the help of a group that followed us, the congregation of First Presbyterian was able to have services in their beautiful sanctuary on Easter morning. We estimated that our little group worked 670 hours during the week and even though that was a small drop in a very large pond, the ripple will continue as long as we remember that all things are possible through Christ. We were reminded of the resiliency of the human spirit, time and time again, and will never forget the kindness, resolve, strength and love that was displayed. Thank you all for your support and prayers us we traveled to New Orleans. Please remember to keep the residents of the Gulf States in your prayers as their journey is far from over. The devastation is vast and it will take years to rebuild and restore.
