To Care in Crescent City

A few weeks have passed, and a few projects have been done. While I am beginning to feel that my job will be mostly authoring mentoring/tutoring programs that may have to be implemented in the next term, I am growing much more comfortable being in N'Orleans. It's funny how important small things become; your favorite restaurant, place to get a cup of coffee, street, park, bar. It lets you see a city as more than just a location.
Our latest corporate project is painting murals for schools, an affair financed by Starbucks. It's hard to think about Starbucks without thinking of Lewis Black's hysterical critique of the company, but it's encouraging to see that companies are investing some time and money into the betterment of the city. It's been fun so far, and though the work I've been doing with my other VLs has ranged a bit, it has brought some insight into what can be done to best help the city progress. If New Orleans is going to rebuild in a way that stabilizes it for the future, it's going to be done by New Orleans and the private sector.
From a personal standpoint, my views on what it means to be successful here have been greatly modified. Though I still put a high level of measure in being able to complete some programs here, I am finding that I am being shaped by my VL family. I'm learning to be a bit more open, less critical in my approach. In some ways, my VL family is a bit like N"Orleans; diverse, cultured, sensitive, thoughtful, foreign. We're all starkly different in our philosophies and backgrounds, sleep habits and diets. Funny how there's no real drama between us. Either way, it's good to be part of it.

Bunks

From bunkhouse

We started as Volunteer Leaders here the same day HONO started moving into their brand new Volunteer Housing Facility. (I just call it the bunkhouse.) It's a cool place, and I got to play with powertools while we re-assembled the bunks.

I got to know the bunks pretty well durring this - which was made more interesting by the names, dates, and little messages left behind by volunteers. Some people stuck with the standard - "Courtney's bed", "Adam slept here." Other people put their favorite inspirational quotes, or bible verses, or song lyrics. Some left advice, from the practical - "Cab ride from Bourbon: 6.80 + tip" to the more philosophical: "Trust your calling."

They ranged from a 12-year-old who came with her church group from Washington DC (Hi, Addison!) to reunion groups with college graduation years well before I was born. I saw schools from San Jose State University in California to Johnson State College in Vermont. (They drew a map.) People listed cities from Seattle to Boston, and I'm pretty sure there were all of the lower 48 states.

From bunkhouse

It may be silly, but seeing these little messages meant a lot to me. Living in New Orleans, it sometimes seems there's a disconnect between us and the rest of the country - that most people don't know or care what happens here. But each note and name is proof that someone did notice, and did care, enough to take time out of their life to come here and try to help.

From bunkhouse

Big Test in the Big Easy

Maps don't tell the entire truth when one tries to feel the cultural texture that is the fabric of America. I've lived in a lot of places, but N'Orleans has a vibe all its own, a place where music is a the single most powerful adjective in its language of soul spiked with suffering. I'm making my first observations of this city as an outsider, and honestly that's the way it'll probably be when I leave. But even on the outside, you can feel the pulse of a place.
My name is Apurou, and I'm originally from the East Coast but I've truly grown up in Kansas City, the place I've called home in all my travels and where my extended family has lived for generations. I'm anticipating a September Peace Corps departure to the South Pacific, so I felt after graduating from KU (Rock Chalk JayHalk) I'd do some meaningful work here in N'Orleans, a place I associated more with swamps and jazz than acutal people. I still have so much to learn from this place, but I feel fulfilled and hungry being here. I was apprehensive in my initial days of being here. N'Orleans is a place where if one's going to flourish, ambiguity and grey make up for a lot; where collective memory is just as much of history as documented fact. This isn't the America I know, but it's special in its depth. We had a project recently where I remembered why I came here; help is help, no matter what the surface looks like. I am really excited for the coming days, and I'm sure at the end of my time here, I won't be the same author as I was when I got here.
Either way, I hope you grow to love N'Orleans as I am. Peace.

Hello and welcome!

My name is Rosalie, and I am a recent graduate of the University of Michigan. I first came to New Orleans during my spring break two years ago and worked with Hands On gutting houses and doing other disaster response work. Although I was only here for a short period of time, I left the city with the desire to return. New Orleans is like no other place that I have ever been; the people are warm and friendly, the cuisine is exotic and full of flavor, the architecture is colorful, and music resonates from every inch of the Crescent City. However, amidst all of the culture and beauty lies destruction, poverty, and social injustice – and this is truly why I am here. Over the next three months, I will be working in my focus area of disaster recovery to plan and lead sustainable and meaningful projects while forming partnerships with the community – and I could not be more excited!

Please feel free to contact me at rbcohn@gmail.com.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?…Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do…It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." - Marianne Williamson

Laurel Elementary Garden

Intro!

Hello! I'm Jess, and I'm one of your friendly blogging Volunteer Leaders (VLs) for this fall. More about us and what we do later.

For now, something about me: I'm 24. I'm originally from Connecticut, but I moved down to New Orleans about two and a half years ago to go to Tulane. I make hats out of Mardi Gras beads. (Seriously. It was the only way to stop them from cluttering up my closet.)

If there's anything you're especially interested in hearing about the VL training, Hands On, or the city in general, let me know. (If you don't, me and Rosalie reserve the right to use this blog to talk primarily about desserts. I don't think anyone wants to see that happen.)

Feel free to comment here, or, email me at jpepe@tulane.edu