Slidell Magazine - 61st Edition by Slidell Magazine

THE

OFFICIAL

The Circle of Life mosaic by Rose Marie Sand. Cover design by Kim Bergeron

Katrina 10th Anniversary

WE KEEP IT FRESH

SAY KEEP IT POSITIVE

MAGAZINE

Commemorative Edition

SLIDELL

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Editor’s Letter

Kendra Maness, Editor/Publisher, Slidell Magazine

We all have our Katrina stories. My story involves chemotherapy, 174 dogs, and 51 cats for the day of the storm; and another 30 treatments of chemotherapy and 4000 rescued animals in the months following. There are lots of details in the middle, but the story ends pretty simply – I made it through. We ALL made it through.

.................. On a personal note... Ten years ago, I was battling cancer, chemotherapy and Katrina. It was all overwhelming. In the midst of the hoopla, a friend gave me a “Katrina” bottle of wine, with the promise that “things will get better.” For the past decade, this bottle has remained unopened in numerous houses in multiple cities and states, seen me through cancer, watched over me as I opened a new business, and even survived through another flooding hurricane. On August 29, 2015, I will be in the City of Slidell Auditorium, along with most of my staff (and many of you too) for the Remembrance of Katrina. I will have that long-held bottle of wine and drinking glasses with me. I’m finally ready to pop the top and put Katrina behind me. Indeed, things did get better, and I am healed. Join me for a toast to our community and to each one of us. WE DID IT.

Call it denial, call it coping, or call me healed – it’s ten years later and I simply refuse to be hurt by that damn storm again. I want to be happy for all that has happened this past decade, and I want to share that happiness with you, my readers. So, for this special edition, I challenged all of my writers and artists this month. I asked them to:

SEPTEMBER, 2005: A very bald Kendra (week 22 of chemotherapy) clearing trees after Katrina Welcome to Slidell Magazine’s commemorative Hurricane Katrina 10 Year Anniversary edition.

1 – Tell a story about Katrina, holding their personal stories to a minimum.

Month’s ago, while reflecting on the upcoming anniversary of the day we’d all like to forget, I had a conversation with a friend, lamenting on the media coverage that would accompany the anniversary of Katrina. I confided that I didn’t think I would be able to stomach the film footage, see the pictures of the devastation or hear the horror stories. I have managed to avoid them for TEN YEARS. Like many of you, I didn’t evacuate. So, the months of no electricity (therefore, no TV) were a blessing for me, protecting my head and my heart from the carnage outside of my immediate area.

2 – Write/create in their usual style (“Jockularity” still had to be about sports, “Making Cents…” still had to be about money, etc.). 3 – Make it POSITIVE. Quite the challenge, as I soon found out. Most of my writers struggled to find positivity in such a personally tragic subject. Yet, one by one, the stories emerged. As harrowing as revisiting Katrina was to my visual and literary artists, they all gave me

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the same feedback... it took ten years to find the GOOD in the bad, but it was defintely there. Writing the stories, going through the photos, illustrating the articles, all of it seemed to have a cathartic effect on us. We hope this edition will do the same for you.

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SLIDELL MAGAZINE PO Box 4147 • Slidell, LA 70459

www.SlidellMag.com • 985-789-0687 Kendra Maness - Editor/Publisher Editor@SlidellMag.com

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Illustrations by: Zac McGovern www.HalMundane.com Contributing Writers Donna Bush EFOP, Charlotte Lowry Collins The Storyteller, John Case Jockularity, Corey Hogue Pet Points, Jeff Perret, DVM Crimmi-Mommly Insane, Leslie Gates Nauti People, John Felsher www.JohnNFelsher.com Once Upon A Time...In Slidell, Ronnie Dunaway Ronnie@WhoDatShoppe.org Making Cents of Your Money, Mike Rich MikeRich@mypontchartrain.com Go Beyond, Rose Marie Sand Rose@RoseMarieSand.com COVER ART CIRCLE OF LIFE BY ROSE MARIE SAND COVER ART DESIGN & CENTERFOLD STORY & ART DIRECTION BY KIM BERGERON

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August 2015

Extraordinarily Fascinating “Ordinary” People

Captain Eric Abney

Out of disaster come life-long friendships. ~Eric Abney

by Charlotte Lowry Collins

Eric originally included credits to numerous members of the fire service, friends and mentors. Because of space constraints, we were not able to include these recognitions, or Eric’s humble gratitude to each of those whose lives have touched his. We hope you know who you are, and that you are appreciated. ~ Editor

Have you ever wondered about the first Hurricane Katrina rescuers that went door-to-door helping to get folks out? The only evidence of their encounters were the fluorescent X’s with numerical messages on our houses here in Slidell. Every time I see one of those orange equations, I try to imagine what that person must have experienced. I arrived for my interview and was greeted by a tanned, muscular man in a crisp uniform. Captain Eric Abney invited me into his office at the St. Tammany Fire District 1 Training Academy on the Camp Villere property. There

were plaques and awards on every wall and fire hats and gadgets on the shelves. Eric’s desk is full of electronics. In the middle of the huge desk stood a large double monitor system with Katrina videos and photos that I would never have witnessed otherwise. Eric, the Captain, or “E” to some, explained that the first responders exchanged this kind of eye-witness documentation, and he compiled it on this computer. For me, it was like being in the middle of the storm and overwhelming aftermath all over again. It is still utterly incomprehensible. Ten years later, it is still so hard to look at, and yet, so hard to look away from. This month’s Extraordinary Person is someone who works to keep our community safe, regardless of the emergency. Whether it is a crisis involving one individual, or the whole community, our firefighters are committed to our safety. Eric began the interview by pronouncing, “I don’t talk about the death or hard stuff, because I don’t want to dredge it up again. It’s hard not to bring that home with you.”

I asked how he can turn that off. He shrugged, “The guys all debrief ourselves most of the time, maybe go get a beer together, because it’s best if you get it out and talk about it. We try not to put that burden on our loved ones. Occasionally, the Department may step in, pull us out of service, and get us in one room to talk. Then you have to move on.” Looking through old newspaper reports and photos, I saw the enormity of the incidents he mentioned. I saw the images of the lives they saved and those who didn’t pull through, as well as the haunting details from which Eric tried to protect me and my readers. Before we hear his stories, I want you to know a bit about Eric’s background. He and his three brothers were born and raised on Bayou Liberty, near St. Genevieve’s Church. His parents are Billy and Cynthia Pichon Abney. “My uncle, Denny Abney, served with the Fire Department in the 70’s, and so my dad and all of the uncles volunteered. I still remember Uncle Denny and the Firefighters in Mardi Gras parades. Back then, they gave

out a mini loaf of bread as their throw.” He described his induction to the profession, “I was a graphic artist and a screen printer when I applied to be a Firefighter at age 24. I was hired into Fire District #1, Station 16, at Eden Isles in 1991. It is one of the most rewarding decisions I have ever made.” He swiveled toward me and elaborated, “The fire service has afforded so many opportunities for career advancement, opportunities to meet people from across the country, and travel to places I would not have ventured otherwise.” He smiled and added, “Plus there are times I still get to use my graphic skills for the Department. After Katrina, I helped design our commemorative coin. I travelled to the Departments that came to our aid and thanked them, bringing the coins and T-shirts I designed.” Eric reached for his decommissioned helmet and showed me the artwork adorning it. It was vibrant and upbeat, contrasting with the seriousness of his profession. “I am also one of the Department photographers, and my biggest project was to take pictures for our first yearbook.” It offered a rare glimpse into their personalities, and I could see the bond this Captain has with his Department. As the Fire Department’s scope expanded over the past two decades, so did Eric’s training. “I became a medic 22 years ago, which serves me well. We are usually the first ones there and stabilize the patient for the EMS personnel.” Looking off, Eric stated calmly, “I’m not sure most people realize the tumultuous environments we walk into. I’ve been assaulted by distraught members of the victim’s family, and you just have to shake it off and keep trying to do your best for the patient.” When the Department began the rope rescue team in 1995, Eric served as the Rescue Coordinator for the Special Operations Division. “We were grateful for this training and equipment when we were dispatched to an accident involving an 18-wheeler and a DOTD utility truck. The patient was thrown from the bucket of his utility truck and was located on top of the 18-wheeler that struck him. We stabilized him, loaded him into a Stokes basket, and rigged it for a lowering operation. The aerial ladder was used as a high point anchor so we could lift the patient off the truck. We anchored ropes to two Firefighters who lowered the patient to the ground where an ambulance was waiting.” Eric reminded me that, as Slidell grows outward and upward, this training and equipment could prove to be vital for the safety of our community. My interview with the Captain was unlike any other. Eric’s media was so well organized on his computer that he could pull up imagery for every story he had to tell. It was like watching movie clips on his life. “When the original Cross Gates Athletic Club caught fire in 1996, it was one of the biggest fires I

had fought.” He laid out the scene. “It was an early morning fire, and we were dispatched around 7:15 AM. Station 14 was across the street from the fire, and their men advised heavy smoke when they opened the engine bay door. We responded from Central Station in Olde Towne. While still responding, Engine 14 is calling for a second alarm, needing more manpower and water supply. It was a cold day for us, holding around 12 degrees, and we had to fight that one for about 12 hours. During the fire, another Engine Company was assigned to the second floor with a 2½ inch hose line and, despite the flow, the fire was all around us. We started pulling the ceiling down, and found the fire had already gotten behind us. The order was given to evacuate a few minutes before a partial collapse of the second floor.” Eric broke the solemnity of that moment to explain that he would have to get home to make a pound cake from scratch for his son’s birthday. Being a dad to his two boys, Logan and Blakely, is a priority, despite his demanding profession. Eventually, Eric became Captain of Rescue 11. “That was a dream job.” He sat up straight as he said more excitedly, “That truck goes on every call. I don’t like sitting around.” When a Training Officer’s position became available at the Training Academy, Eric welcomed the new challenge and currently serves as the Captain and Training Officer/ EMT there. “I am constantly training for something new to further my profession. I want to give back what the Department has given me all these years,” he stated as he reached on the shelf for a thick three-inch binder full of the certificates he had earned in 24 years. “I enjoy ‘paying it forward’. We schedule vacation in order to do volunteer work. In September of 2005, a group of volunteers from the ‘New York Says Thank You’ group came to Slidell to help after Hurricane Katrina. Every year, on the weekend before the anniversary of 9/11, this group picks a disaster-stricken area to help rebuild. I started going with them.” Fast forward to 2009. “We drove 28 hours to Little Sioux, Iowa to build a chapel on the site where four Eagle Scouts lost their lives to a tornado. Our group totaled 16 members from various backgrounds, including Firefighters and

Military personnel. This build was a lifechanging event, and I came back a different person. I was privileged to see healing; not just for the area we built in, but also for the builders. We forged lifelong friendships, and I got to know Firefighters who responded to the Twin Towers on 9/11. Since then, I have traveled throughout the country doing builds.” “A grassroots effort began in 2011. We were building an animal shelter during the annual ‘New York Says Thanks You’ build. We heard about a wounded Veteran coming home to an unfinished remodel about 45 miles away. About a dozen of us got together and finished the project before his arrival in Georgia. It was so humbling that just a few of us could get it done because it was the right thing to do. In 2014, we formed a larger build team to build a house for a wounded Veteran that would fit his special needs in Guntersville, Alabama.” Fast forward to 2015. “The team grew larger and we headed to Ringgold, Georgia to partner with ‘Steps to Hope’ to build a house for a Sergeant who had lost both legs to an IED blast. During the build, the group decided that we needed to form our own organization and we needed a name. ‘A Soldier’s Journey Home’ was born. We go around the country doing charity builds for wounded servicemen. We built the last three-bedroom house in only nine days.” Eric showed me the video. Those men were scurrying all over the narrow roof beams, swinging hammers, their nail guns in rapid fire. He clicked off the video proclaiming, “That felt really good.” Through these interactions, Eric was asked to serve in the Honor Guard for the 9/11 flag. There were only four people appointed from outside the FDNY, with two of them from Slidell. He pulled up photos of the flag, and I became confused. There were multiple flags all sewn together, like a giant quilt. Eric described the ongoing process. “A flag around the corner from the Twin Towers was badly damaged and taken down, to be retired properly later. Some ladies from Greensburg, Kansas (the town a tornado completely wiped out) wanted to sew their salvaged flags in the missing gaps for this 9/11 flag. The next year, it was decided to bring it to all 50 states for display and each state would then add their own decommissioned flags as a patch. The objective was not to dwell on 9/11, but on 9/12, which was the

Eric and his sons, Logan and Blakely, “shaking the boot” for MDA

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day the U.S. came together to help New York City. Their motto is ‘Love is Stronger Than Hate.’” His eyes glinted. “The first time I held that flag, it still smelled of diesel fuel, and concrete dust was in the fabric. It was just amazing. I arranged to have it brought to our state during the Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial in Baton Rouge. We held the stitching ceremony in the Capitol, and then in Slidell at the Harbor Center.” Eric smiled and proclaimed, “My sons even got to make a stitch,” and showed me their photos. With wonder, he exclaimed, “Touching it was like electricity, it spoke to you. We want people to touch it, unlike a museum, because we want them to feel an attachment. The Honor Guard travels with this flag at all times, and I have been honored to take part.” He recalled, “Louisiana citizens collected money to purchase a new fire engine and sent it up to New York after 9/11, and they returned it to Louisiana during the aftermath of Katrina. That very fire engine was the truck the flag rode in all the way to Baton Rouge. This flag never rides in the baggage compartment of planes; sometimes it even flies in the cockpit with the pilots.” Eric began to open up more about his Katrina experiences. “Katrina was an unbelievable experience. I didn’t see my family for 23 days afterward. I was the Captain of an Engine Company, Station 14. On Sunday evening, we sent half of our men to a location in Slidell, and the other half were spread out over various locations outside the area. I was in a school in Pearl River. Our communications went down, so we didn’t know what was happening in Slidell. On Monday afternoon, we got the call to return. As we all convoyed with Sherriff’s Deputies, it took us three and a half hours to cut through the trees on Highway 11 just to reach Brownswitch Road. From there, we were sent to the Eden Isles area and assigned to survey the damage and rescue trapped survivors. When we saw that the Twin Spans were down, the reality hit me. There were just massive mounds of lumber, and debris was spewed everywhere. We discussed the options, and came to the consensus that we would have to cross over the debris by foot, then carry people back across these unstable piles. As I moved from house to house, it struck me what everyone had lost in this town where the eye of the storm passed over.” For the first time, Eric laughed. “I remember one time, my partner almost fell off the ladder above me when a strange voice inside this house began answering our calls. He was in such a hurry to reach this person, because they were just kind of repeating everything he said. It was really

with other service professionals. Winn Dixie was really good to us, and we shared the wealth. Everything was rationed. That’s one reason we didn’t need the residents coming back. The rescuers didn’t have enough to sustain them, and we certainly couldn’t feed the masses. I continued to rescue for nine days straight until I got injured climbing in through the broken windows,” and he stood up and pointed towards his rear. I won’t go into details, but that was the second time he laughed. Then he sobered and stood tall. “Let me tell you, Slidell did an amazing job,” he said proudly. “We received many accolades for our department’s quick response.” The Firemen also gained an even stronger bond to the community, and to each other, through their shared Katrina experiences. “We are family, and that’s the way it is.” eerie. Turned out, it was a big bird. We had to rescue it, because there was no food or water, and the heat was unbearable.” “One of the people I rescued was an AP photographer, and her photo of me went viral. That was the only way my family knew I was alive and well. We walked across all these piles of rubbish, wires, gas cans, you never knew what was under there. One lady refused to leave without this huge suitcase. She had everything she had left in there, and we had to carry her out in a chair, as well as

that heavy suitcase. All the while your footing was constantly shifting in that debris. We heard about some of the fires by radio, and could see them, but there was just no way to get to them. Four feet of water standing everywhere, crazy! We saw buildings that had already burned to the ground, nothing left; but the good news is that I never saw a single dead person.” “I lost about 20 pounds during that time. We never stopped moving. We didn’t have a lot of food, and had to share everything we had

As he grabbed his keys, Eric brought all of these experiences in perspective. “Some of the rescues require hard decisions in order to save a life; some decisions I hope most of you will never have to make. Through all of the recent disasters I’ve come to realize it can happen anywhere, anytime. One thing’s for sure, we know now how to deal with it.” And, with a wave, he was gone. I hope on this ten-year anniversary, we remember those who strive relentlessly to help keep us and our community safe. And when you see them, please thank them!

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Storyteller

A CAT NAMED CHESTER A Hurricane Katrina Story

Some years ago, I was talking with Sam Caruso. He was the mayor of Slidell at that time and Sam is never without words. He asked me what Slidell was missing. I thought being asked my opinion by Sam was an honor, one that deserved a calculated answer. I thought a minute and then told him that, in my opinion, Slidell was missing a sense of community. I told him that we were a melting pot; a collection of people from varied geographical locations, with different cultural biases. I told him this was not uncommon in any city, especially one that has grown as fast as Slidell; but for some reason, we had thus far failed to come together and be a community. He asked me to explain more and, even though I am not a native-born Slidellian, I told him what I perceived. I told him that the Slidell of the 50’s was very content with its quality of life. There were a dozen or more “first” families and they all knew their role and maintained a certain position in the community. With the space program locating nearby, families from across the country began to move here in the 60’s, literally by the thousands.

not come easily and it took a little prodding from Mother Nature. As a kid, it seemed that most of my maturing came in the summer time, the months of vacation away from school. It seems that these three months created more change in me than the other nine.

These newcomers spoke differently, dressed differently, and acted differently. They wanted to project their backgrounds and ideas on our city that was doing quite well without their input, thank you. There was no real hostility - they just did not fit in with the locals, or the locals with them. That was forty years ago. Thankfully, things have changed. First of all, those people who made up the growth - those who came here during the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and stayed - have now been here long enough to call this home. They slowly adapted to Slidell and Slidell to them; but it did

School was out for the summer and I would not see most of my classmates until fall enrollment. I was always amazed at how much they had grown and how their personalities had changed. Some that I did not like just a few months before became my best friends, and the opposite was also true. So much happened to me in the summers of my life. One June, I was in a serious accident and was confined to bed until September. One summer when I was sixteen, I traveled with my brother across the United States. Another summer, I worked on a ship and experienced two weeks of paid leave in San Francisco. (This was the summer of 1966, a good time to be in San Francisco.) Then one summer, I made a commitment. I got engaged to be married.

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With the exception of the summer I got engaged, I don’t think any of these previous summers could possibly have the influence on my life that the summer of 2005 had. It started in late August, when a tropical storm turned into a hurricane. This hurricane was not supposed to come our way, but on a Friday evening we were warned to be alert. We were told that we were most likely in its path and it could be serious. We had no idea how truthful this advisory was.

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On Monday morning, August 29, 2005, she rolled in and she was no lady. I dare say that if the levees had not broken in New Orleans, Slidell would have been the most damaged community in her path. Some neighborhoods looked like war zones. It was hard to find a building that did not have some damage, and many were damaged significantly. Tragedy tends to bring out the best and the worst in people. I think the way that one reacts to tragedy has a lot to do with the character of the person or persons affected. Only a small percentage of our population has been exposed to tragedy on a wide scale basis. I suppose those who were connected to the 9/11 incident, Mt. St. Helens eruption, the fire of San Francisco, tsunamis, and those that have been in the path of a destructive hurricane could be considered as exposed to wide spread tragedy. Out of tragedies come legends, and out of this tragedy I have to tell you about a cat named Chester. Chester will never be a national legend; but through his actions and perseverance, it has made me understand the meaning of home and the deep desire to protect and be a part of your community. For years I lived next door to a wonderful elderly couple, Bill and Jean Graham. They were some kind of special people and they loved animals. Jean especially loved her two dogs. One morning, in about 1997, we heard an animal crying at the front door. We opened the door and there was a yellow cat that was obviously abandoned. He had been in a fight and his ear was bleeding. He had matted hair and it was obvious he had been on his own for some time. He was certainly nothing to look at.

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My son Chris, who loves animals, fed the cat. This was against my better judgement. I did not want the cat to adopt us. Luckily for him, he did not. He adopted the Grahams and Bill adopted him. They named him Chester. After some tender loving care, Chester transformed into one of the largest and most beautiful cats I have ever seen. His tail was seventeen inches long and when he would go on walks with Jean and the dogs, he would follow behind, waving his tail, as if to tell the traffic, “Slow down, my family is ahead.” Bill’s devotion to that cat was deep, and Chester’s devotion to Bill was the same. Hurricane Katrina brought about three feet of water that covered Bill’s yard as well as mine, and about a foot of water entered our houses. Dozens of trees were downed, a total of 57. My family had evacuated to Mississippi and we returned the Friday after the storm. The Grahams were nowhere to be found and I assumed they had evacuated with their dogs and Chester. Weeks passed and they did not return. Weeks turned into months. There had been no work on rebuilding their house or clearing their yard. One day, while cleaning downed trees in my yard, I saw a yellow cat walking on a fallen tree in the Graham’s yard. I called for Chester, but whatever cat it was, it ran.

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Chester emerged from the underbrush. What a joyful reunion. Chester had the homing instinct that most of us had. He, like us, had come home to once again make this our place to live. There were a lot of two-legged Chesters that emerged. For the first time, engineers and scientists stood shoulder to shoulder with brick masons and carpenters in an effort to salvage, to rebuild, to reestablish what they did not realize they loved, but had lost - their community. We realized for the first time that a roofer was as important as a doctor. We learned we needed each other. Many, at first, wanted to leave. They did not want to go through the sacrifice of rebuilding. But most just wanted to come home, rebuild, and resume their lives, just like Chester.

A few days later, the Grahams came home. “Have you seen Chester?” were the first words out of Bill’s mouth. I told him not to get his hopes up, but I had seen a yellow cat about a week prior. Bill went inside his damaged home and found some dry cat food. He placed it in a bowl and started calling Chester. Within five minutes,

Sadly, in a few short years, my good friends and neighbors, Bill and Jean, both passed away. Guess what? Old Chester, probably fifteen years old by then, did not want to leave his neighborhood. It was home. He just moved over with us and that is where he lived until he too passed away. You see, we had learned through all the hardships that we wanted Chester as a part of our family. He was a symbol; a symbol of a turning point in our lives.

 John Case

August 2015

Chester was a survivor. He hunted what he needed to eat and he lived. He dealt with hardships as we did, but it was worth it. As strange as it sounds, Chester may have extended Bill’s life. I think this man and cat reunion gave Bill that extra he needed to survive some rough weeks ahead in a FEMA trailer. I think this tragedy taught all of us that we need each other’s support and talents. I think in the days that followed Katrina, we became a community; a tight knit community.

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Louisiana Wildlife and Nature Then & Now Story and Photos by Donna Bush

For a year or longer after Katrina, it was eerily quiet in the marshes and refuges around our area. The wildlife, the birdlife - just gone. There were no birds singing, no crickets chirping, no alligators bellowing, not even fire ants! As with many of our homes, the wildlife lost their homes, their food sources, and many, their lives. The first to be hit was Breton and Delta National Wildlife Refuges. Breton, made up of the Chandeleur Islands and Breton Island, was designated a National Wildlife Refuge in 1904 by President Theodore Roosevelt to provide a safe haven for nesting endangered piping plovers and brown pelicans. It is also used as nesting habitat and wintering grounds for many other species of shorebirds and waterfowl. Delta, established in 1935 with approximately 49,000 acres, was formed by the deposit of sediment from the Mississippi River. It provides wintering habitat and sanctuary for waterfowl and migratory birds. Breton lost over 70% of itsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; land base from Hurricane Katrina, destroying large areas 20

of beach and marsh that provide vegetation to stabilize the island and valuable nesting habitat for pelicans and terns. The historic lighthouse that once stood at the northern end of the Chandeleur Islands was destroyed. It is estimated that the islands could completely disappear in as little as 10 years if nothing is done. United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USF&WS) is working with their partners to recover from the damages wreaked by devastating storms such as Katrina. As a result of the BP early restoration funding, there is a project in the planning stages to pump sand into the Breton Island area and restore 500 acres of critical nesting habitat. (Nesting numbers took a huge hit after Katrina, dropping to less than a fourth of the usual number of nests.) Update and good news: In 2011, Breton reported the largest number of nesting pelicans since Katrina, with over 8,500 nests. Also 120,000 tern nests, the largest number in over a decade, were reported, along with an increasing number of colonial nesting seabirds.

Delta NWR, part of an active delta originally built primarily of sediment deposits from the Mississippi River, suffered marsh and beach erosion, along with downed trees and debris, such as entire barges, washing ashore. Vegetation was severely stressed by saltwater intrusion and the sheer force of the water pressure. Update and good news: Deltaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s land base is rebuilt each time the Head of Pass of the Mississippi River is dredged. As Katrina moved northward, Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge was next in her path. Made up of 24,000 acres of fresh and brackish marsh, Bayou Sauvage is one of the largest urban wildlife refuges in the United States. The refuge is made up of a variety of different habitats, including bottomland hardwood forests, lagoons, canals, borrow pits, cheniers and natural bayous. With most of the refuge residing inside the hurricane protection levees, the natural water flow patterns are interrupted, making it a challenge to maintain productive

wetland habitats. The refuge was established in 1990 to provide wintering habitat for migratory birds and waterfowl, with over 340 species calling it home. In addition to the birds, American alligators, alligator snapping turtles, canebrake rattlesnakes, gulf coast box turtles, largemouth bass, bream, crawfish and blue crab reside within the refuge boundaries. The refuge logs 50,000 visitors annually for hiking, canoeing, bird watching, fishing etc. The eye of Katrina passed about 15 miles east of the Ridge Trail entrance to Bayou Sauvage, bringing a wall of water that breached storm protection levees along with 132 mph wind gusts. Portions of the refuge were covered in 6-8 feet of saltwater, severely damaging the freshwater ecosystem. It took weeks to pump out the floodwater. Up to 80% of the trees were killed and over 1700 acres of fresh and brackish marsh were destroyed. We won’t see in our lifetime the regrowth of the spectacular canopy of live oaks that once shaded the Ridge Trail boardwalk. At one point, the salinity inside the levee system was higher than outside the levees. For up to two years after Katrina, fishermen were catching their limit of saltwater species such as speckled trout and redfish INSIDE the refuge! It is impossible to know the fate of the wildlife that called this area home, but many had to be displaced or killed. Refuge Manager, Pon Dixson, said, “It was quiet. Eerily quiet for at least a year or longer.” Neotropical songbird habitat, even though it is a small area of the refuge, was completely destroyed and will take some time for the trees to reforest. Bayou Sauvage provides one of the first stops for spring migrators after crossing the Gulf. Shorebirds that breed in the arctic and sub-arctic spend their winter in the tropics and some parts of the southern U.S. They use Bayou Sauvage as a critical location to rest and replenish their fat stores for the long flights. Update and good news: Numbers of waterfowl and shorebirds are approaching pre- Katrina numbers. Alligators have certainly rebounded. Wild pig and nutria numbers have remained consistent. Even Neotropical songbirds are returning. On the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, Big Branch National Wildlife Refuge was hit just as hard, losing over 70% of the nesting trees for the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW). Founded in 1994, Big Branch contains more than 18,000 acres of offshore grass beds, marshes, hardwood hammocks and pine ridges. This variety of habitat allows shorebirds, wading birds,

Neotropical songbird migrants and year-round resident waterfowl to call the refuge home. Deer, rabbit, mink, otter, raccoon, muskrat and nutria can also be found. The marshes provide critical spawning and nursery habitat for a number of fresh and saltwater species. Bald eagle and osprey also nest in the refuge with lots of available food sources nearby. The refuge logs more than 200,000 visitors annually, enjoying hiking, biking, canoeing, bird watching, wildlife observation, photography, hunting and fishing. The endangered redcockaded woodpecker was impacted the most by Katrina. They prefer to nest in living pine trees that are about 60 years old with old-growth heartwood softened by red-heart fungus, making it easier for them to chip out a hole and create a nesting cavity, and taking them about two years to build their home. With 70% of these old growth trees destroyed by Katrina, the already endangered woodpecker became even more threatened. Prior to Katrina, Big Branch housed 17 families of woodpeckers, with each family consisting of 2-4 birds. After the storm, their numbers dropped to 10 families.

When it came time to rescue people, our folks got in boats and assisted in rescuing 4,500 people. We picked up chainsaws, and we cleared roads and driveways and found people literally where their respirators, the generators running the respirators, were about to run out of gas. We helped people get the help that they desperately needed and also helped clear the pathway to the [Louisiana] Heart Hospital so that patients and the medical centers could work. When it came time to get out of the way, we opened our Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge as a headquarters for all the other workers to come in, take a shower and rest and have laundry. We served 35,000 meals. In the midst of all this, we had 50 employees that were significantly impacted. Some of them lost everything, just like everyone else down there did or a lot of people did, and yet the very next morning, they showed up to work and asked what could they do to help.” One thing not often realized about the refuges is the important part they play as buffers against storms for the coastal and inland communities. As devastating as the damage from Katrina was, think how much worse it would have been were it not for the mashes and wetlands slowing down the storm and absorbing some of the impact. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) states, “For every 2.7 miles that a hurricane travels across marshes, estuaries and structures such as oyster reefs, the storm surge is reduced by one foot.”

Update and good news: Federal and state wildlife officials are helping out the small 7” long woodpecker by boring holes in younger pines, inserting a manmade bird-sized nest box in the tree and dripping white paint down the trunk to resemble pine sap, giving the birds a visual cue to their new home. Today, RCW’s are back up to their pre-Katrina numbers of 17 families!

There used to be about 100 miles of meandering bayous, oyster reefs and marshes south of New Orleans. Per USGS, Louisiana’s coastline is losing wetlands at a rate of a football field of coast every hour! Causes of this loss include the 15,000 miles of canals dug through the wetlands for the oil and gas industry, rising sea level, invasive species, hurricanes, and the fact that the Mississippi River is no longer allowed to deposit fresh water sediment in the wetlands. Most people don’t realize the extent of the loss of coastal Louisiana. But in fact, two years ago, NOAA removed 31 bays and other features from the Buras charts because they are no longer there. Some of these points were named by French explorers in the 1700’s.

Southeast Regional Director for USFWS, Sam Hamilton, eloquently summed up the Katrina response from the USFWS’s Southeast Louisiana Regional personnel when he appeared at the oversight hearing before the Subcommittee on Fisheries and Oceans in March of 2006.

Update and good news: USFWS, in partnership with non-profit organizations such as Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL), Coastal Roots, Common Ground Relief and others, are undertaking massive initiatives to plant native marsh grasses and trees to help reclaim the losses.

Mr. Hamilton stated, “I could not be prouder of the people in the Fish and Wildlife Service.

CRCL, formed in 1988, started as an advocacy group but grew into a habitat restoration 21

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Coastal Roots is an education outreach program associated with LSU bringing in students from 2nd grade though high school to learn about and become environmental stewards of their natural resources. The students establish plant nurseries at their schools, growing native plant seedlings and grasses that they will plant in coastal habitat restoration in south Louisiana. Common Ground Relief was formed exactly one week after Katrina, on September 5, 2005, out of the immediate crisis of those residents of the Lower Ninth Ward. With residents losing their homes, their possessions, no electricity, no water and no help, they bonded together to help each other, to check on the elderly, making sure they had their medication, food to eat, water to drink and then carrying this mission forward to surrounding hard hit areas. They have assisted in gutting houses, rebuilding homes, and providing basic needs. They have a health clinic, women’s shelter and a legal clinic. Thomas Pepper is the Executive Director and James Stram is the Wetlands Project Manager. Thom came to Common Ground as a volunteer in 2006 and fell in love with the area and the program. The wetlands restoration program, founded in 2006, with a goal “to shed light on where wetlands restoration needs to happen, determine who should be responsible for doing it and then do it ourselves whenever possible.” It became so costly to buy the grasses and trees that, in 2009, they established their own nursery for growing native marsh grasses and trees, such as bald cypress, red maple, sweet gum, various oaks, pecan, and persimmon. They are able to grow the trees from seedlings and have them healthy and well established when planted, thereby increasing the success and survival of the planting. Trees are chosen to provide canopy, suitable habitat and food sources for wildlife, as well as a windbreak against storms. James, originally from New York, studied Environmental Science in college and came to Common Ground as a temporary volunteer when he rode his bicycle from Montreal, Canada to Key West and on to New Orleans. He enjoyed his work so much that he stayed and even hatched an idea to build a sailboat, sail around Lake

Borchert Law, PLC Adoptions Family • Private Adoptive Parent & Birth Mom Counseling Pontchartrain and plant marsh grasses. He named his mission CircumPontchartration, covering 150 miles and planting 1000 plugs around the lake before running into issues with a tear in the sail and a broken rudder. They had to abandon the remainder of the trip, but have now completed repairs and plan to return back to the mission in the near future. Making beauty out of destruction is what wood sculpture artists did along Mississippi Coast Highway 90 with the majestic old live oak trees killed by the deluge of saltwater that destroyed their roots. There are eagles and herons, seahorses and dolphins, honoring the beauty of the trees with their second life. In Slidell’s Heritage Park, our very own artist, Phil Galatas, carved a beautiful frog waiting to jump into the canal from a live oak stump. Even though Katrina brought her share of destruction, there can always be found a silver lining, a beauty out of the muck. Sometimes we just have to look a little harder than others. Take a chance. Look a little deeper. When I think about the changes in nature after Katrina, I remind myself of this -- lotus flowers only bloom out of the muddy murky waters. They begin growing at the bottom of a muddy, murky pool, and slowly emerge towards the surface, bursting out of the water into a beautiful blossom. During the night, the lotus closes and sinks under the water, and emerges again with the sunlight of a new day. We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival. ~Winston Churchill

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Of Your Money By Mike Rich, CFP® Pontchartrain Investment Management

Whether it’s a hurricane or your money, choose to be prepared. As it was for many of you, Hurricane Katrina was devastating for Mary and me. I’ll spare you the details, but the main thing for us was that the dream home we had built just nine months earlier in our beautiful Chamalé neighborhood was in ruins. I have a painful memory of Mary crying in the middle of our family room. It was hard to imagine ever moving beyond that time in our lives.

But, move on, we did, and we recovered well from the storm. The biggest advantage we had – and this cannot be overstated – was the cash savings account we had built up over many years, which allowed us to get started on rebuilding our home just two weeks after the storm, instead of having to wait for our flood insurance money. In short, although we didn’t fully appreciate it before the storm hit, we were prepared.

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I wrote an article for this magazine a couple of years ago about “digging a moat” for one of my clients as a way of helping him prepare for the unexpected financial headwinds he and his family might face. My memories of Katrina reminded me of the work we did together. Some of this might work for you, too:

1. We bought life insurance to protect his wife and family if he dies before she does. One of my client’s primal fears when he was a young family man was that he would leave his wife and children with no money for a decent standard of living, college tuition, and retirement if he died young. He knew that his wife might not want or be able to get a job, find another husband, or move in with her mother to make ends meet. So, he bought as much life insurance as the insurance company would give him. He bought term insurance at first, because it was cheap. Over time, however, we converted a lot of it to whole life insurance because he liked how it built cash value, figuring (rightly) that he could use the cash as additional retirement income. So now, not only will his wife have the money – and choices – to live out her days with dignity if he dies first, they will have a nice nest egg to draw from if they need it before he dies.1 My client’s wife has a whole life policy, too. It’s enough to help their kids pay her final expenses and then some. I don’t know of many people who can get away without having a lot of life insurance coverage. Call me, and we’ll figure out what you need and how you can pay for it.

2. We protected his income with disability insurance in case he can’t work because of an illness or injury. Although my client now has his own business, he used to work for a big company. He had group disability coverage, but, like many group policies, it had a lot of coverage holes and we figured he’d have a real battle on his hands if he ever submitted a claim and tried to collect. So, he purchased an individual

policy, just in case. We hope he never needs it, but if he does, his policy will replace most of his take-home pay.1 Unless you have another income source, my guess is that your paycheck drives most of what you do financially for your family. Are you protecting it with disability insurance? If not, call me to get something in place soon.

3. We put some of his money in fixed annuities so he and his wife will have a guaranteed income in retirement that will never run out. My client does not have an employer pension, so he is building his own with fixed annuities. When he’s ready to take income from them, he and his wife will have a steady flow of cash to supplement their Social Security benefit. Because of the way his annuities work, the income base builds up in a predictable way every year. Plus, even if they live to be 110, that cash flow will never end.2 Does this sound like something you’d like, too? If so, call me and we’ll get it set up.

4. We purchased long term care insurance so my client and his wife can live out their days in dignity if they need someone to take care of them. My client has a painful memory. His grandfather had to spend every penny of his

money – accumulated over more than 50 years of work as a bartender, housepainter, and high school janitor – on nursing home care. He lost his house, too. It’s something the family still talks about, nearly 45 years later. My client wants something better for his wife and himself. So, they have a long term care insurance policy that will pay for their care when they’re old, whether that care is at home, in a nursing home, an assisted living residence, an adult day care program, hospice, whatever. Not only is their money protected, but their three adult children are relieved of the potentially crushing financial, physical, and emotional burden of caring for their parents.1 Can you imagine the financial peace of mind they have? The long term care industry has changed dramatically in the years I have been a financial advisor, and there are a lot of options, including some that let you build assets while you protect them. Approximately 70% of people over 65 are at risk of spending a bunch of their retirement money on long term care. DO NOT BE ONE OF THEM. Call me to find out how you can avoid that catastrophe.

and money troubles included – and I have not yet met anyone who is immune. The conversation I never want to have with a client starts with, “Well, I guess we never thought that would happen to you.” It would ruin my day. Being financially prepared for the future is a choice that only you can make. Have you been thinking that maybe it’s time to get your financial life in shape? That maybe you’ve procrastinated long enough? A lot of people wait to prepare for hurricanes until it’s too late. Don’t make that mistake with your money, your retirement, or your wish to have a financially-secure future. I’m just a phone call away, so let’s get started.

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Income guarantees depend on the claims paying ability of the issuing company. Annuities are long-term investment vehicles designed for retirement purposes. Gains from taxdeferred investments are taxable as ordinary income upon withdrawal. Guarantees are based on the claims paying ability of the issuing company. Withdrawals made prior to age 59 ½ are subject to a 10% IRS penalty tax and surrender charges may apply. 2

No one I have spoken to about it ever expected Katrina to be as devastating to Slidell as it turned out to be. I make it a point when I work with my clients to convince them to always expect the unexpected. Life has a way of throwing curve balls at us – hurricanes

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cathartic Hope for Habitat: Katrina X and the healing power of the arts

Art direction and story by Kim Bergeron

It was a moment that will never be forgotten by those who had the opportunity to witness it. A procession from the Slidell Municipal Auditorium to Heritage Park, led by about a dozen monks. They were garbed in full length, burgundy robes with saffron sashes, crowned with hats that created the appearance of bright yellow mohawks. Traffic on Front Street was halted until the visitors from the Drepung Loseling Monastery and all those who were following had made it safely across to the other side. Many of the delayed drivers stepped out of their cars for a better look, trying to comprehend exactly what it was they were seeing. The crowd continued its journey to the park, with the monks in the lead. They lined up along the dock bordering Bayou Bonfouca. As they chanted, the Tibetans then poured the sands that just moments earlier had been scooped up from the intricate mandala they had spent the previous five days creating. It is the monks’ belief that the sacred mandala sands contain healing powers, and the bayou’s flowing waters would spread that energy to those most in need—which, in the post-Katrina apocalypse, was nearly everyone. The “Mystical Week of Healing” was one of many cultural experiences that contributed to the community’s restoration following the hurricane. The arts provided an escape from the harsh reality of all things K, and more and more people sought the catharsis by attending, singing, dancing and creating. While others were tasked with rebuilding the city’s infrastructure, it was the arts community that was tasked with rebuilding people’s spirits. Now, with the tenth anniversary of Katrina rapidly approaching, many would rather forget that the storm even happened. But the reality is that to think that such is possible is naïve. Katrina was a life altering, inescapable part of our history. So while we can’t deny it, what we can do is choose how to remember it. For the arts community, the decade of rebirth and recovery is being commemorated with an art experience celebrating some of the very artists who provided rays of light amidst the post-K darkness.

Hope for Habitat: Katrina X, or KX as it has come to be known, showcases 20 of those artists. The event includes an art exhibit in the Slidell Cultural Center at City Hall, an online auction on the tenth anniversary of the storm, a KX exhibit commemorative book, a community “Rebirth” tree project, children’s and adults’ art workshops and more. The exhibit, which opened in the Slidell Cultural Center on July 24, will remain on display through August 8. Hours are Tuesday - Friday, 10am 4pm and Saturdays, 10am - 2pm. Admission is free. Works will return to City Hall on August 29, where they will be on display in conjunction with the City of Slidell’s and St. Tammany Parish’s collective commemorative event, “+Ten.” The KX works also will be concurrently offered via an online auction. Proceeds from the art auction will support the artists and East St. Tammany Habitat for Humanity.

KX featured artists include Connie Born, Devin Boutwell, Kenny Bridges, Mary Christopher, Charlotte Lowry-Collins, Tami Curtis, John Doherty, Phil Galatas, Joel Geiger, Carol Hallock, Mandie Manzano, Kelly Landrum-Hammell, Nelle Landry, Michael Reed, Al Reisz, Adam Sambola, Rose Marie Sand, Caron Sharpe and Stephan Wanger. Additionally, I have contributed work and am serving as the event coordinator and curator. Each of the KX artists has a story to tell, as does each work included in the exhibit. Many of the KX works have been inspired by musicians and celebrities, with the hopes of securing autographs that will help generate additional awareness as to the cause, the artists and the cathartic power of the arts. The first piece created for the exhibit was “The Circle of Life” by Rose Marie Sand. It was inspired by Sir Elton John and the song for which the piece is named, as the lyrics seem to mirror the mission of all that Habitat is and does.

surge flooded her shop. It would be nine years before she could bring herself to create again. Her husband, Dean, says that now the fire within her has returned, and she’s creating at warped speed. For Connie, the creation process finally has provided a much needed healing. When invited to participate in KX, artist Mary Christopher embraced the opportunity with a gleeful spirit that spawned a multitude of thoughts. She ultimately selected Bob Dylan and his song, “Tangled Up In Blue,” as the subject for her mixed media creation on a box. The result is a multifaceted masterpiece adorned with images of the musician and a tangled web of beads, string and feathers, celebrating many sides of the legend.

“Art is subjective,” said Rose, “and I hope what you see in this piece moves you as the song has moved me. A friend saw the eye of a hurricane, and although that was not in my thoughts as I placed the tesserae, perhaps we always move through the circle of life, in the eye of a hurricane. The reflective surfaces of mirror and reflective glasses enable the viewers to see themselves in the circle of life.” The story behind Adam Sambola’s “Charlie Daniels” fiddle actually began on October 28, 2014, the night Sir Paul McCartney signed The Beatles-themed piano for Habitat. When the news of the signing was posted online, my friend Eneida Allison reached out to me to advise that she has connections to the Charlie Daniels Band, and she asked if we’d like to attempt to have the band autograph something for Habitat. It was an offer we couldn’t refuse. Eneida began laying the groundwork, and Adam was on standby pending approval. He began painting as soon as the confirmation was received, and Eneida made the trek to and from Bremen, Georgia to secure the sigs—not just that of Charlie Daniels, but those of the entire band, making it the first autographed piece of the KX exhibit. Connie Born’s “Rock Star” was inspired by Rush’s Neil Peart. The Mardi Gras Mischief Creation is armed with drum sticks, prepared to provide the heartbeat of his band’s music. For Connie, her own heartbeat was devastated when she lost over 450 of her handmade creations when the storm

father, whom she said was also her best friend. He was very passionate about music, encouraging her to play whatever instrument her heart desired. “One day, while he was playing guitar in a coffee shop in Cali, my dad was approached by a man who said, ‘That’s the worst guitar playing I’ve ever heard in my life.’ That man was Bob Dylan,” she said. “My dad chuckled and invited him to sit down, and they spent some time playing, talking, and drinking coffee.” Shortly after Hurricane Katrina, her father’s health began to decline. But he still loved to play guitar for her, and whenever he flubbed a chord progression, he reminisced about the Bob Dylan encounter, which was always good for a laugh. Sarah said that after his passing in 2012, she felt that a part of her was gone forever, that she would never have a friend as true as he had been. “Over the past two years, I’ve been so hurt and at times lost as to where I should go. Seeing Mary’s work brought life to Dad again, and that means the world to me. It brings me great joy to be able to tell his tale again, and it’s almost as if he lives on through me when his stories are shared.”

Art heals. Art makes us feel. It was Mary’s work that moved local artisan Sarah Landry to tears. In the same way that hearing a certain song can transport us to another place and time, to a treasured memory, so, too, can visual arts. When Sarah saw the Dylan-inspired piece, immediately, her face lit up and her eyes welled up with tears, which quickly turned into a free flowing stream born of joy and nostalgia. Clearly, the artwork had touched something deep within Sarah’s soul. It was a beautiful testimony as to the transformative power of the arts.

It also inspires. Such was the case with Charlotte Lowry-Collins, for whom Ian Somerhalder’s passion for animal rights was the catalyst for her donation to KX. “Perceptions I” captures the story of Charlotte’s rescue of a Weimaraner, which she named Beau. The pup quickly settled into his new home and became a beloved member of the family. In this work, the artist illustrates

Sarah then shared a story that explained her reaction to the work. She reminisced about her

Artwork, far left: Tangled Up In Blue by Mary Christopher; top left, The Three Piano Men by Tami Curtis; bottom left: Geraldine on Break by Carol Hallock; center: The Circle of Life by Rose Marie Sand; top right: Tereson’s Beauty Underneath by Stephan Wanger; bottom right: Strung Out by Kelly Landrum Hammell.

that even as circumstances change, all living beings remain susceptible to misconceptions and the skewed realities that follow.

more traditional career. Unfortunately for Bridges, a non-violent drug offense led to his incarceration at the age of 24. It was then that the young man reflected upon his life and realized that he wanted to make positive changes. It was a path that was soon paved by his childhood love of art. What resulted is a gift that has left all those who have seen his artwork in awe of his talents. While Bridges was a trusty with the Slidell Police Department, his talent was shared through numerous murals on public buildings throughout the state, including the waiting room in Slidell’s historic train depot, and with donations of art to a myriad of causes in the area.

Charlotte had an opportunity to chat with the actor during his recent visit to St. Tammany. After the two shared animal rescue stories, he autographed her work, expressing his gratitude for her rescue of the dog. “With all my love and thanks,” he wrote on the artwork alongside his autograph. Longtime Habitat supporter Tami Curtis’ artwork is a remarqued edition of “The Three Piano Men,” featuring Dr. John, Allen Toussaint and Professor Longhair. The original is part of the permanent collection of the Blues Hall of Fame in Memphis, TN.

Kenny’s story hit close to home for artist Devin Boutwell, who also found himself on the wrong side of the law through a series of unfortunate circumstances. It was art and the desire to create a better life and pave a stronger path that changed Devin’s life. He now produces custom hand carved and art adorned skateboards and has a devoted following.

Tami was a board member for the East St. Tammany Habitat for Humanity when discussions began back in 2007 to 2008 about an annual Habitat fundraiser. She was a founding member of the result of those conversations, the “Home Is Where the Art Is” fundraising gala. The original of her “Hope Floats” artwork, created after Katrina, now hangs in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. “Tami has to wear gloves to touch her own artwork,” laughs East S. Tammany Habitat for Humanity President/CEO Debbie Crouch. “The sale of her work was so abundant that the proceeds enabled her to co-sponsor a Habitat home build in Slidell.”

Art sustains. Then there’s the work “autographed” by Katrina herself. Al Reisz’s “Chinese Vase – Ancient Vessel Series I” was turned out of cherry wood, then accented with gold leaf and lacquers, with the intent of creating the appearance of an historic relic. When Katrina flooded the artist’s home, it left behind remnants of mud that, ironically, enhanced the artist’s intent for the vase. As such, the piece remains as it was altered by the storm. For Mandie Manzano’s playful style, Taylor Swift seemed like a perfect fit. Mandie’s “Enchanted to Meet You” finds her likeness of T-Swift on the banks of a Louisiana bayou, guitar in hand, performing for a myriad of critters. The artist has masterfully captured the essence of the young musician in a serene, even surreal, world in which music brings peace and joy.

John Doherty’s Twisted Fleur de Lis series has provided the artist his own brand of post-K therapy. From tiny pendants to massive sculptures, with a variety of sizes and styles in between the two, the metal works are the epitome of resilience—they may be bent, but they do not break. John has created a large scale version of his artwork with a special noir finish, atypical of his line. His wish is that the black Fleur de Lis be adorned with golden autographs from those he feels truly represented pictures of resilience following the storm—the New Orleans Saints. “Strung Out” is a rather apropos name for Kelly Landrum Hammell’s piece. Certainly, those who endured Katrina and the post-storm saga can relate. The surface of Kelly’s hand thrown pottery bears a striking resemblance to the thick mud mosaics that were everywhere after the storm. The work is crowned with a mass of spiraling guitar strings, reminiscent of the twisting winds of Katrina.

Art transforms. Such has been the case with Kenny Bridges. As a child, he loved to draw and doodle, but his father believed he should focus his energies toward a

As would be expected, in Devin’s eyes, Tony Hawk is a rock star in his own right. The celebrity skateboarder has inspired multiple generations of young men and women, and continues to inspire those who remain young at heart. The pro boarder’s stunning feats and mastery of his craft ultimately led to immortalization via a series of Tony Hawk video games. The artist created a special design, inspired by his idol, for the KX exhibit. The board features a Phoenix, rising from the ashes, with a simple message carved within the design: “Risen.” For skaters, it means getting back up, no matter how many times you fall. For Katrina warriors, it means refusing to accept defeat.

Artwork, top: Perceptions I by Charlotte Lowry-Collins; center: Twisted Fleur de Lis by John Doherty; bottom: Charlie Daniels Fiddle by Adam Sambola; top right, Duck Dynasty by Joel Geiger; center: Last Turn Home by Caron Sharpe; bottom right: Hope Always Rises by Kim Bergeron.

The power of the arts was never more evident to Carol Hallock than it was after Katrina. She recalls showcasing her artwork in an art market just months after the storm, saying it was her most successful showing ever. She was moved by seeing Katrina survivor after survivor purchasing her work, and that of others, from the market. “I had a woman purchase my work even though she didn’t have her own place to stay,” said Carol. “She purchased it because she said she needed the comfort that my painting brought to her.” It was a profound realization. It’s not unusual to spot Carol navigating the area’s bayous by kayak, with paint, brushes and canvas in tow. The kayak is her studio, connecting her with nature, up close and personal. Her KX contribution, “Geraldine on Break,” was last seen in the movie “The Best of Me,” which was filmed in part in St. Tammany. For Caron Sharpe, the opportunity to transform the ugly side of Katrina into something beautiful and meaningful was both therapeutic and joyful. “Last Turn Home” is painted on a shutter door salvaged from the storm, depicting egrets as they return to the swamps of Louisiana after the storm had passed. The work is inspired by Louisiana’s own Tim McGraw, and his song of the same name. The swamp also serves as an inspiration for artist Joel Geiger, who creates intricate sculptures in layers upon layers of metal. His Robertson-like beard nets him frequent jokes about being the missing Robertson brother of the Duck Dynasty clan. So it seemed only fitting that his contribution to KX feature a Louisiana swamp scene, complete with duck. The Robertson brothers have agreed to autograph the work of art in support of the exhibit. Michael Reed took a playful approach to his work, inspired by the Rolling Stones, which was also the first act he saw in concert. Titled “50 Lips,” Michael’s work delivers exactly what its title promises—the feature for which front man Mick Jagger is most famous, multiplied by four dozen plus two to spare. The bright red lips protrude from a stark white background on the mixed media piece, which is sure to bring a smile to viewers. The architecture of New Orleans, in the multilayered, stylized presentation for which Nelle Landry is known, brings a different angle—or quite a few, actually—to the KX exhibit. “Saints and Sinners” captures the fun of the celebrated NOLA establishment, and depicts the artist and a handful of friends who trekked across “The Frank” for a lunch gathering. “The place lives up to its name, capturing that for which New Orleans is famous, right down to the somewhat risqué names of items on the menu,” she laughed. “So here we are, a bunch of grey haired ladies—my friends from church, mind you—eating lunch, cutting up and having a good time. It wasn’t our typical outing.”

The exhibit also will include one of Stephan Wanger’s Bead Town creations from his “Beauty Underneath” series. Stephan’s intricately detailed works are created with recycled Mardi Gras beads—hundreds of thousands, and in some of the larger works, millions. His creations have garnered several Guinness World Records, with another soon-to-be-record holder currently in the works. The work on display, “Tereson’s Beauty Underneath,” is representative of a forthcoming auction item, for which the high bidder will select a photo of the eyes of an individual to be depicted in a custom work of art.

Art imitates life. Artists are known for having their fingers on the pulse of the nation. Since the beginning of time, artists have documented the world’s struggles to survive, peace and war, feast and famine, poverty and riches, religion and politics. Those who create make us think. They make us feel. They hold up mirrors so that we take a look at ourselves and the spaces that we occupy on this planet.

For Phil Galatas, that mirror includes a reflection on the controversy surrounding the Confederate flag and how polarizing it has become to people across our nation. Do we erase history? Do we honor it? Do we reinvent it? “Shredding History” invites viewers to contemplate the magnitude of the effect that such decisions will make, and the potential, far reaching impact that can result.

Rounding out the KX events are the forthcoming art workshops. These will include a Rebirth tree workshop for children, many of whom were not even born when Katrina hit. Artist Rose Marie Sand will teach an adult workshop. Dates are forthcoming. The classes are presented in an effort to provide a therapeutic diversion from the memories and media rehashing of Katrina stories. Hope for Habitat: Katrina X is presented in partnership with the East St. Tammany Cultural Economy Coalition, an independent partnership of artists, arts organizations and cultural economy businesses, working together to grow the cultural economy, increase awareness of the economic impact of the arts, and educate as to the importance of appropriate artist compensation for their works. The artwork, stories and additional event information are featured on:

www.RightBrainDiaries.com

Up to date information is available on:

Facebook.com/HopeForHabitat

“Hope Always Rises” is the study created for the “Rebirth” tree. The sky is created with messages of hope received after Hurricane Katrina. For the large scale artwork, the public will be invited to write farewell messages to Katrina on art boards located in the gallery. On August 30, that board will be flipped over, symbolic of putting Katrina behind us and moving forward. The large scale, mixed media Rebirth tree will be built atop the board, with the background sky created using the uplifting messages shared from around the world, completed with the signed paper leaves from those who have contributed their thoughts. A second Rebirth tree, featuring messages of support and signatures received from celebrities, also will be created. The resulting work will be auctioned online in conjunction with Habitat’s 2015 Home Is Where The Art Is gala on November 20. 29

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Remember Kennard vs. Katrina? Slidell Magazine visits with Slidell’s most improbable movie celebrity

the proverbial Man versus Nature struggle, Nature usually wins. However, one intrepid Slidell man took on the full force of Nature and not only survived, but thrived! As Hurricane Katrina headed directly towards Slidell, most of us hurriedly packed what we could and raced to higher ground. Not Kennard Jackley! Long before Kennard fought Katrina, he made the sea his home. Born in Illinois, the Air Force veteran moved to Pearl River in 1967 and Slidell in 1973, but spent much of his life at sea, including more than 25 years on one 640-foot long cargo ship. “I spent 30 years in the Merchant Marine as an electrician on a ship and went all over the world,” he recalled. “The longest I ever stayed onboard a ship without touching land was 27 days while going from Panama to the Far East. I’d usually stay on the ship about three months, come home a few days and then leave again. I was gone about seven to eight months a year.”

At age 55, he retired from the Merchant Marine and lived a quiet life in his two-story waterfront house on Carr Drive, just a couple hundred yards from Lake Pontchartrain. Ten years after coming home from the sea, the

sea paid him a visit. The sailor weathered many storms on the water, so he figured he could do one more at home. “I was in storms in the North Atlantic and a few typhoons in the Pacific, including one that killed 690 people in the Philippines,” Kennard explained. “Once, we were running from a typhoon, but it changed course and we ran right into it. We were in it for six days. We had to tie ourselves into our bunks. When we came out of it, all the paint on the ship blew off as if it had been sandblasted. I never figured Katrina would be that bad. Whoever would have thought the water would get 14 to 20 feet high?” Kennard’s wife, Mary, better known as “Dookie,” didn’t share her husband’s optimism. Dookie grew up in Slidell and went into labor as Hurricane Camille smacked the Gulf Coast in 1969. Some relatives lived in Biloxi, Miss. After chopping through the attic, they spent several days on the roof waiting for rescue. Dookie refused to let that happen to her. “On the Saturday before the storm hit, Margaret Orr of WDSU-TV said if she could go, she’d head for Dallas,” Dookie recalled. “That sounded like a good idea because I have family there. Ever since Camille, I’ve always made sure we were prepared. Kennard

used to make fun of me, but I made sure he had an axe, rope, life preservers and other stuff. You never know when something might happen.” Dookie called her 85-year-old mother and drove to Covington to pick her up. Together, they drove to Dallas to stay with Dookie’s sister. She took the dog, Maggie, but left the cat, Miss Kitty, with Kennard. “I grabbed garbage bags and emptied my dresser drawers into them,” Dookie said. “I didn’t think about taking photographs or important papers because Kennard planned to ride it out. We never figured the water would get upstairs. I thought I’d only need clothes for about a week, but didn’t come home for six weeks.” While Dookie prepared to evacuate, Kennard grabbed a video camera and started recording everything in the house and around their property for insurance documentation. Even as conditions worsened, he continued taping.

“The house was built in 1972, just three years after Camille hit,” Kennard explained. “When we bought the house, it was six months old. The guy who built it was a police captain in New Orleans and had Camille fresh in his mind. He put rebar in every brick downstairs and poured cement in every concrete block. It’s built like a fortress, so I wasn’t worried about the house. I sandbagged all around it and put plastic sheeting on the doors.” On that fateful morning, the winds grew ever more fierce and the swirling water continued to rise. Surrounded by marshes, canals and Lake Pontchartrain, the low-lying Carr Drive wetlands can flood during an average high tide. However, this day proved anything but average. Alone except for Miss Kitty, Kennard prepared for battle. Most of his neighbors had already left. Even Miss Kitty didn’t offer much companionship as she hid under the bed until the storm subsided. “I called Kennard at about 10am that morning from my sister’s house,” Dookie said. “At that time, the cell towers were still working. He said the water was coming up and the trees were bending over.” With little else to do, Kennard continued documenting the destruction and narrating each significant event as it occurred. He calmly described the wind and its effect on his surroundings. He caught horrifying footage of the storm sweeping neighboring houses off their foundations and blowing them away. At least eight houses disappeared near his home. At one point during the storm peak, Kennard said, “Man, I never thought I’d die like this.” “It really started getting bad about 10am it and seemed to last for days,” he remembered. “The water was going in all different directions. Everyone else right around me left, but we still had a few people in the area. It was terrible. One neighbor’s house was built on the ground, not pilings. The storm surge pushed his house off its foundation. He jumped into a barge floating in the canal. It floated past my house while I videotaped it. I didn’t know he was in the well of that barge. For a while, I didn’t think I was going to make it, but most of the time, I didn’t even think about dying. I guess I was lucky, but I didn’t worry about it.” The retired sailor found himself in a somewhat familiar situation -- completely surrounded by water -- so it didn’t faze him. However, unlike a ship that rises and falls with water levels, the house remained immobile, albeit, with most of it submerged under more than 14 feet of water. Water even poured into the second story. Kennard stuffed some of Dookie’s handmade quilts under doors

A small glimpse of the landscape of Carr Drive following the storm

to stem the tide, but water still flooded the second floor to 10 inches deep. Outside, debris from destroyed houses, vehicles, downed trees and assorted other flotsam choked the churning waves. By about 7 pm, the storm began to subside, but the water remained high for days. With little else to do, Kennard swung his camera all around to record the damage. In his own house, water demolished the entire downstairs floor where Dookie ran a beauty parlor. The storm also swept away the stairs, trapping Kennard on the second floor. “My wife’s beauty shop took a lot of time and effort to build and it was a total loss,” Kennard remarked. “When the water level came up, everything just floated away like it was nothing. Even the toilets and bathtub washed way. We had four feet of marsh grass inside the shop and another 20 feet all over the yard. The grass was full of snakes, nutrias, spiders and other animals.”

With the power out and no air conditioning, late summer heat approached 100 degrees inside the damaged house. Kennard wrapped himself in wet towels to take an occasional catnap when not filming. Sometimes, he listened to a battery-operated radio or watched a battery-powered television in stifling heat. He had a small generator, thankfully, as the power on Carr Drive was out for nearly three months. Eventually, Kennard went to a store with a neighbor to buy a larger generator. “Filming was something to do while the storm was happening and afterward,” he advised. Once the sky cleared, the former electrician rigged up some small solar panels that Dookie used to power garden lights. He used these solar cells to recharge his video recorder batteries and continued filming to fight off boredom. “I went two days without running water. It was four or five days after the storm before I could get more food. The military brought in some trucks with Meals Ready to Eat about a week after the storm ended. The Red Cross came around giving people ice and water.” Recalling his nautical training, Kennard draped an American flag upside down on the balcony as a distress signal. Anyone who saw it would know that only a live person would arrange it that way. As the water started to recede, a young man with a small bulldozer came through clearing the road. “When that young kid came by with a bobcat, I asked him to help me clean up before 33

Dookie came home,” Kennard quipped. “I wanted to get everything cleaned out before she came back from Dallas. Because of all the debris, she couldn’t have even driven up into the driveway.” Meanwhile, Dookie sat in Dallas glued to the television, watching the news coverage from New Orleans, not knowing if she would ever see her husband again. On the Friday following the storm, some Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries officers drove down Carr Drive, spotted the flag and found Kennard and Miss Kitty uninjured living on the second floor of his battered, but still standing, home. They called Dookie. “When I left, I didn’t think it would be the last time I’d see Kennard, but afterward they started showing scenes of New Orleans on TV,” she recalled. “Then, I started worrying. I thought he was gone, but didn’t know if he was alive or not. At about midnight that Friday, Wildlife and Fisheries agents called my sister’s house in Dallas. I figured that was THE call, but they said they found Kennard alive and well.”

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Dookie still couldn’t return to Slidell for another five weeks. In the meantime, rescuers and recovery teams arrived. Some residents began to return. Kennard’s small generator could not power the refrigerator. Before food spoiled in the summer swelter, Kennard barbecued grilled pork chops, fish and other items. He fed some recovery teams and returning neighbors. He even made deliveries by bicycle. “Water was squirting out of my neighbor’s well, so I hooked my hose to it and had water,” Kennard advised. “With my generator, I pumped water up into my bathtub and the washing machine so I could wash clothes. On a ship in the middle of the ocean, we can only carry so much stuff. We can’t just run down to the local hardware store to buy what we need. We must make do with what we have.”

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Slowly, very slowly, crews cleaned up debris, made repairs or replacements and life began to return to some semblance of normalcy. The sailor continued documenting the cleanup and recovery efforts. In some video footage, people can see natural gas bubbling up from a broken line in a neighbor’s yard. “When I came home six weeks after the storm, I couldn’t believe it,” Dookie recalled. “At the house, all I could see were piles of broken trees and pieces of houses everywhere. We had no doors on the house. On Pontchartrain Drive, debris was piled 20 to 30 feet high on each side of the road. It was like driving in the mountains. Without electricity, Slidell was in total darkness. It was pretty dark out here.

What really impressed me was how everyone helped everyone else. We all pulled together in Slidell. That didn’t happen elsewhere.” As things returned to normal, Kennard showed some people the video footage he had shot and they expressed an interest in purchasing a DVD of the footage. Thus began an unlikely “film career” for Kennard. The Jackleys began making DVD copies and selling them, but soon, they could not keep up with demand. They hired a professional video production company to clean up the raw footage and edit it. The result, a 3-hour video packaged under the name “Kennard vs Katrina.” Sales boomed. And guess what? The video sales paid for the house repairs. For those of us who evacuated and were watching the news coverage after the storm, we’ve all probably seen parts of Kennard’s video. Many national and international media picked up the footage and broadcast it. All or parts of the video appeared on the New Orleans news channels, more than 250 NBC affiliates, the Weather Channel, the Discovery Channel, PBS Frontline, CNN, and even internationally on the BBC. “What happened to us is nothing compared to what happened to many people,” Dookie lamented. “I lost my business, but I kind of felt guilty about making money selling the videos when other people didn’t have a penny to their names.” Today, Kennard and Dookie enjoy sitting outside their rebuilt house where they have lived for more than 40 years, watching fish splash in the canal behind the boathouse. If another storm comes raging, Kennard says he plans to ride it out again. After all, he’s already won a battle with Nature before.

A happy & safe family: Kennard, Dookie and Miss Kitty 35

Go Beyond Art & Story by Rose Marie Sand

I had it down to a science. In all the years I’ve run from storms, I always took two things – a jar of peanut butter and my photograph albums. On August 28th 2005, I broke those rules. My husband had put our family photo albums on the highest shelf in our Chalmette home, wrapped in black contractor plastic bags, so we thought they were safe. And I was out of peanut butter, so I threw three pairs of old shorts and tee shirts in a bag.

Maybe I envisioned hours spent in a hotel somewhere with no electricity and nothing to do, so that’s why I grabbed that binder with research notes on Fazendeville. As it turned out, of all the things I could have grabbed, the binder did have meaning after all.

I remember walking past my office and taking one last look around. As disorganized as my office always is, I knew instinctively I wouldn’t see it in that same order again.

Fast forward a few months to December 2005, and I’m sitting in Slidell in the fourth in a string of post-Katrina temporary housing. I pulled out the Fazendeville notes.

I picked up something and shoved it in the bag, not sure why that particular thing called out to me. In the days that followed, I kicked myself many times for not grabbing items with more meaning.

I’d always known I wanted write the story of the displaced St. Bernard community of Fazendeville – the notes, newspaper articles and interviews I had collected spoke ever more strongly to me.

The historic African-American residential community Fazendeville, or Fazende Village, existed from 1867-1964 on the site where the Battle of New Orleans took place in Chalmette, Louisiana in 1815. The entire community was displaced and their homes razed to link the Chalmette National Cemetery to the Jean Lafitte National Park by right of eminent domain, in 1964. Battle Ground Baptist Church, the spiritual hub of the community, moved to Flood Street in New Orleans and many of the residents settled in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, about 20 miles from the home they’d always known.

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The church was flooded during Hurricane Betsy in 1965, and was completely devastated by Hurricane Katrina. As I sat pouring over the documents in my binder, displaced from my own home in St. Bernard by a force greater than even eminent domain, the idea of a play was born. I wrote a one-act play I called “On The Levee in Fazendeville,” and produced it for Dramarama at the Contemporary Art Center in New Orleans in 2006. So, the binder then went on a shelf in my new home in Slidell, quietly holding the stories of Fazendeville and the photos of former residents, once again. I often picture my hand reaching out for the binder as I walked out of my home – I often wonder what items the residents of Fazendeville might have taken with them when they last saw their homes in 1964 before the bulldozers came. Or what items everyone else took when they evacuated from Katrina’s path. I was a teenager when Fazendeville was destroyed; I was happy and carefree and scarcely thinking about such impacts. In 1965, I met my husband, Milton, in a hurricane shelter during Hurricane Betsy. In the tumultuous era of the ‘60’s, I began a new life with him, and raised a family in Chalmette. We’d often go to the Battlefield Park, and Milton and I would talk about seeing the homes of Fazendeville when we were kids walking along the levee. Here’s where my story begins to connect to that long ago destroyed community: My father, Joe DiGiovanni, was a burly redheaded man with an Italian name, who looked more like W.C. Fields than Dean Martin. As a redheaded little girl, I was often proud to point out, whenever someone doubted my heritage, that I was indeed 100% Italian – with names like Palazola and DiGiovanni to back me up. I didn’t learn until I was an adult that my Father had actually been adopted; therefore, whether he was Italian or not was in question. But that question of heritage scarcely mattered to me – my family is warm, loving, and Italian enough for anyone. I suppose the idea that I may in fact have blood of unknown relatives always made me feel more connected to everyone in the world. Now, hopefully you’re still following along the path of this story, because Fazendeville and me are about to connect in a way I never imagined. I was asked to participate in an art show at Studio Inferno in connection with the Bicentennial

of the Battle of New Orleans in January 2015. The show was called “ArtiFiction” and artists were given the directive to “create an artifact” about the historic battle. I pulled out my Fazendeville binder, and committed to make a project that would both honor the story, and fulfill the directive. During the weeks that I created my artwork, the photos of the former residents stared up at me from my workbench. In an inspired moment, I found an old Bible, aged it to look as though it had gone through a flood, and put copies of my newspaper articles and other research in its pages. I created a triptych of panels, showing the battlefield in 1812, 1850 and 1964. A mosaic above the cryptic shows the eye of Jean Pierre Fazende, the free man of color who founded the village, and he overlooks the past, present and future of the land. The artwork came together for me in the pages of that Bible…especially when I found some other old documents…. Among papers recovered by my family after Katrina is a copy of my father’s birth certificate. It shows the name of his adopted Mother and Father, and it shows their place of birth in Italy. But it also shows their place of residence at the time my Father was born. And that place is Fazendeville. I was stopped in my tracks when I found that document as I was working on my art about Fazendeville. My Father’s adopted family lived in Fazendeville – the city I had been researching for years. A city of African Americans – I had no idea I could have a personal connection.

newspaper articles about Fazendeville to the former residents in attendance. I learned that my grandparents had worked the fields in Fazendeville. I don’t really know much else – immigrants and sailors indeed did come together in that land on the Mississippi River, where my blood relatives may have trod. That’s my story of Katrina. Like all of us, I have more story to tell. But now, ten years later, this is the story I choose to remember. My history wasn’t destroyed, it lives in my heart. I believe the people of Fazendeville must feel the same. There’s a line in the research about the seizure of the Fazendeville land by the park service that I find haunting. “The choice to preserve one history sacrificed another.” And my hard and fast rules about what to evacuate with have expanded, as well. I know that all I need, I carry in my heart, and no hurricane can change that.

The same day I discovered the papers, I was invited to participate on a panel discussion about Fazendeville in connection with the Bicentennial celebration. I carried the binder with me to the panel, and showed its contents of

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Take THAT Katrina “And when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet things that scare you right out of your pants. There are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won’t want to go on...” - Oh, The Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss I read this story with my daughter recently. She kept bugging me to play with her while I stared blankly at a sheet of paper with no words on it. The more she asked me to play, the more aggravated I got. “Can’t you see, I’m busy?” I’m sure this confused her, since she was seeing the same blank sheet of paper that I had been so deeply engaged in for 30 minutes. Kids must REALLY think adults are strange.

She just wanted to play. I mean really, what was the big deal right? How could she possibly understand what was going on in my mind; because to her, all she saw me doing was basically, NOTHING. Believe it or not, children have a way of pulling us out of ourselves, helping us to see the smaller picture… the simple, innocence of life, which ironically, in the end, usually turns out to be the BIGGEST piece of the picture. Or in this case, the blank sheet of paper. An inner child. Each and every one of us has one. It hides beneath the stressors of life, and the callouses of unexpected heartache. That little boy or girl that you once were used to handle things differently… with more wonder, more patience, less worry. Maybe when you were a child, that blank sheet was the opportunity to draw a car with wings or a monkey

sliding down a rainbow, or the chance to write a story about a mean pirate who found happiness when a nice fish befriended him. (I was a little stranger than most kids). In any case, it’s a fresh start, an exciting new beginning, a chance to see life however you want to! I’m a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and that the Big Man upstairs guides us to see the good in situations, even if it takes a long time to see it. As adults, we may close our hearts to the positive messages received from hard times because we are too busy living in the “what ifs”. Well, how about this one… WHAT IF Hurricane Katrina never happened? Just think about that for a minute.

And while you are thinking, I’m going to continue writing something. Don’t mind me...

hundreds of miles just to hand you a bottle of water. Or a toothbrush. Or a word of encouragement.

You MIGHT be a Hurricane Katrina survivor IF:

Ok, I’m back.

- The local liquor store manager in your evacuation area knows your story.

Are you done thinking about that question? I was just pondering some thoughts of my own.

- You know what the “coffin bed” in a FEMA trailer is, and only used it to store stuff.

I’m sure when you think about that question, it probably makes your heart sink a little. You may automatically go to the worst memory of your experience, remembering it like it was yesterday. And most of all, I’m pretty sure you will still grieve for some of the things you lost, whether physical, mental, emotional or spiritual… everyone lost SOMETHING.

- You had to re-route during evacuation, ending up somewhere you never planned, stuck with people you never planned on living with. - You didn’t look away from a TV screen for at least 24 hours. This includes not eating OR sleeping. - You still look at the spot on the wall to check the time, even though it’s been 10 years since the clock hung there. - You ever had to make a serious decision with the question, “Will the mold wash off of it?”

We’ve known that for awhile now. And would probably like to forget it…. kinda like that time I asked a lady when her baby was due and she wasn’t pregnant. See, I’m never gonna forget THAT, and I’m sure she won’t either. But didn’t it make you smile a little?

- In a FEMA trailer, you had to sleep with your head at the foot of the bed, because if you slept the other way, it would be in the clothes closet.

Things aren’t necessarily FUNNY in the moment, but you may be able to laugh later. And even if you can’t, it is still kinda funny how it all worked out in the end.

- It didn’t faze you when a bunch of prisoners walked down your street.

Three months before Katrina, my husband and I moved, and bought a house in Birmingham, AL. I’ve written about this house before… How we searched for the perfect ONE STORIED house, because I hated stairs, but ended up in this THREE storied house because of one of my impulsive, bipolar moments, that I was secretly regretting after we signed the papers.

- You ever held your breath walking past a refrigerator on the side of the road. - You gave a stranger something you had little of, because they had NONE. - You appreciated that there are decent human beings out there that will drop everything and drive

It’s funny now because I choose to believe that our

lives are guided, even in the hard times… MOSTLY in the hard times… because those are the ones that end up shaping us, and the lives of those we come in contact with. This is the EXACT place where you find that annoying quote come to life, “Everything happens for a reason.” When my family arrived to the “evacuation house” that I had reluctantly called home for three months, I had everything ready and prepared for them to live comfortably and happy for, well, maybe three days. That’s how long it was supposed to last, right? Yeeeeeah…. NO. Lesson learned. We ran out of food around the same time all of their bank accounts were wiped out and read an account balance of $0. Checking accounts…Savings accounts… I tried calming my family, reassuring them that my husband and I had enough money saved up to get everyone through until the banks figured out what had happened. As a little bit of the anxiety subsided in them, and I felt like I had things under control, I had to take it all back. I remembered that although we lived in Alabama, our bank was STILL in Slidell. Being 8 months pregnant and extremely emotional already, I found them comforting ME during THAT reality check. I had now taken full responsibility for starving my WHOLE family and it would only be a matter of time before we had no electricity or water, because I couldn’t pay the bills. Lesson two: Don’t take the weight of the world in your hands. Also, don’t be pregnant during a major hurricane. What lessons did you learn? >>>>>>>>>> 41

Yes, I’ll wait again while you think. But while you are thinking, I am going to copy and paste part of an email that I received 10 years ago. Tuesday, September 13, 2005, to be exact. Dear All: I hope this finds you well and dry. In trying to make some sense of all this, I have created the following list: “Top Ten Things I Have Learned from Hurricane Katrina” 10. That CNN actually IS on the air 24 hours a day. 9. That when your house is flooded, items from your bathroom will find their way to your living room and items from your living room will find their way to your bathroom. (I wonder if they speak in passing. . .) 8. That there is more than one kind and one color of mold. 7. That the combination of lake water, sewerage, and mold really doesn’t smell very good. 6. That no matter how heavy your family-heirloom piano or your fully stocked freezer is, it may float and end up on your kitchen table. 5. That, when flooded, expensive new furniture falls apart just as easily as old cheap furniture. 4. That stuff is just that -- stuff. 3. That people really do care; you even get hugs from strangers in Wal-Mart. 2. That memories are in your head and heart - not in tangibles. And, most important: 1. That just when you’re about to break, you find a wooden cross necklace tangled in a bush, or a tiny cross lapel pin in the middle of a dark, muddy, debris-ridden hallway. That’s when you’re reminded that God is there to see you through; that there is Hope through Jesus Christ who gives you Strength; and that there is Comfort through the Holy Spirit. Thank you all for your prayers, calls, and emails. We will get through this because we believe.

I hope that everyone who experienced Katrina in one way or another, found their OWN personal lessons, through their own personal story. They are EVERYWHERE, even all these years later. My 8 year old niece had also evacuated to our home, hearing and seeing everything, blow by blow, just as the rest of the family was. I’m sure she felt invisible at times while the adults were trying to get their lives

back together… wondering if they still had jobs... if their homes were spared from the destruction… if they had enough insurance. There were LOTS of what ifs flying around that little eight year old girl, but it didn’t seem to bother her much. Usually, when I have anxiety, I bust out in random song, using words from the conversations around me. I could probably make an album or two from the songs with the word “Katrina” in them. This is probably why I hung around my niece more than anyone else. She welcomed my inner child. Actually, she brought out my inner child, which had to have calmed us both. Ten years later, she is now 18 and leaving for college in a month. She came over to babysit recently and instead of leaving when we returned home, she stayed and talked to me for a couple of hours. It had been awhile since I caught up with her life. That sheet of paper that I was starting at from 2 weeks earlier, was STILL blank, and peering at me from across the room, reminding me of my eight year old daughter who wanted to play, leading me to the book I read to her. And now, my niece, wanting to talk to me, sparked the memory of when SHE was eight. It’s how my mind works. Can’t help it. So, we talked about it. I felt like we never really had. Or maybe I never listened close enough. What was the Katrina experience like for her? What does HER inner child remember? She said, “Honestly Aunt Leslie, at first, I didn’t understand why everyone was so sad. I thought we were on vacation. I even laughed at my Mom when she cried, because I didn’t get it. I remember the cat getting out of the cage on our way to your house. I was supposed to be watching her, but I fell asleep. She ended up under the pedals while my Mom was driving. I remember only eating the M&M’s out of the MRE’s. I remember feeling like it was my job to lighten the mood and make everyone happy because I still didn’t really understand what was going on. I was told not to worry, and that everything would be ok. I remember this pink pillow I always laid on and feeling sad once I realized that the Panda bear stuffed animal that I left behind had “died”. It belonged to Great-Grandmama. But most of all, through everything, I remember this…

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About the same time that Katrina started to fizzle, heading towards us in Birmingham, I realized what had happened and why everyone was scared and upset. When the rain arrived, I walked outside. I knew it was the same storm that had just hurt my family, but I remember feeling brave, like, COME AND GET ME KATRINA! While everyone was inside worrying, making calls, staring off into space…I stepped out in the driveway…I thought to myself… you can hurt my family, but you can’t hurt me! And then… I DANCED IN THE RAIN.” So, WHAT IF Katrina never happened? Well, I know one thing, we would never be receiving blessings from it 10 years later. My niece would have never told me that the hurricane brought our family closer and made her realize that all we needed was EACH OTHER, with or without houses. It’s all about what you choose to fill in the blanks with. And I am so thankful for the people in my life that help me see this. Especially the children. They see with different eyes. Because of them, my blank page is full now. Actually, you are almost finished reading it. There are so many places I could have taken a story of Katrina, but after 10 years, I’m putting away the what if’s, pulling off the calluses, dancing in the rain, and letting my inner child finish it up with the rest of the quote from Dr. Seuss… “…But on you will go though the weather be foul. On you will go though your enemies prowl. On you will go though the Hakken-Kraks howl. Onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak. On and on you will hike. And I know you’ll hike far, and face up to your problems whatever they are.”

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Do you remember where you were 10 years ago? Were you settled into a career with a comfortable home and family? Were you embarking on a new adventure far away from home? Were you like me, beginning your freshman year of college? No matter where you were in your life, chances are, you remember hearing the New Orleans news teams sending out warnings and planning suggestions over the radio and television. You remember corresponding with family about plans and supplies. You remember wondering how all the hubbub was going to affect you. It is sometimes hard to believe that it has been ten years since the storm of storms changed our lives forever. It is often hard for those of us affected to find a silver lining, or focus on the positive. How can you think positively about something that took so much from so many? I found my silver lining in looking towards the community - seeing and hearing about how so many came together and rose up to combat this natural, national disaster in the ways that we could. Most of us probably donated time or supplies and did what we could to help family and

neighbors. Some of us even donated funds for relief, or provided housing to those displaced. To me, the most powerful message found in the wake of catastrophe was just how connected we all came to be and how willing we were to help. When funds were low and crucial, the charity came pouring in. The donations to relief efforts, the Red Cross, and many other charities reached the billion dollar mark. You could write a book on the different people and organizations that donated time and money to help the victims of Katrina rebuild their lives, but your book might get lost amongst the bookshelves of other documentaries covering the same thing, as there have been so many. When reading about the relief donations and charity provided, it was never any surprise to see how the funds came from politicians and officials. However, what was surprising was the millions of dollars that came from the sports world. I have rolled my eyes many times when I have heard about the ludicrous contracts given to star athletes in professional sports. It is mind boggling when you think of just how much money they make from playing a single game. Not to mention

their compensation for their numerous endorsements. Every year, we hear about the rookies who signed multi-million dollar deals with Nike, Under Armor, or Reebok. Or that every year some different player is now â&#x20AC;&#x153;the highest paid player in the leagueâ&#x20AC;? of whatever sport. And then there are the stories about how they blew all of their money on cars, houses, and other ridiculous ventures. It is enough to make you want to stop watching sports (almost). When Katrina hit, the last place I would have looked for help would have been the sports world. Boy, was I ever happy to be proven a fool for doubting these athletes and their organizations. In less than a month after the hurricane, athletes everywhere rose to the occasion. Early on, football pro Deion Sanders challenged every player in major sports to donate at least $1,000, attempting to reach a goal of $1.5 - 3 million dollars. Serena Williams, tennis extraordinaire, donated $100 for every ace she hit for the rest of the year, her entire earnings from the U.S. Open, and auctioned off her platinum chandelier earrings with 13 carats of diamonds for a total of $21,200.

Warrick Dunn, a Louisiana native and former running back for the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, donated $250,000 and challenged all NFL players, except those who played for New Orleans, to donate at least $5,000 in relief. His effort alone received over $5 million in contributions. And NBA professional Stephon Marbury promised $500,000 to $1 million, easily topping any single donation by a professional athlete. In the same time period, the Houston Texans and Houston Astros combined their donations for a total of $3.2 million, and the Cincinnati Reds donated their salary for one game, totaling $230,000. The Baltimore Ravens raised a total of $855,000, and the list goes on and on. All in all, the NFL led the sports world in donations with $21 million, the NBA followed with $10 million. Interestingly enough, even leagues without New Orleans franchises joined in on the charitable endeavor: Major League Baseball raised more than $9 million, and the National Hockey League donated $1 million dollars, all to Hurricane Katrina relief. In less than one month, owners, clubs, unions, athletes and fans in the three largest professional sports donated more than $40 million to Katrina relief. W-O-A-H. Our Louisiana athletes helped out too. Ed Reed of the Baltimore Ravens, Chicago’s Chris Duhon, and of course, the Manning family all hail from Louisiana, so this storm hit them close to the heart, even if not close to home. Reed, born in St. Rose and a graduate of Destrahan High, was instrumental in the contributions from the Ravens organization. Duhon, a Salmen High graduate, raised $800,000, including handing out over 3,000 boxes of supplies worth $450,000 for residents of Slidell. The Manning brothers, born and raised in New Orleans, brought 30,000 pounds of water, Gatorade, infant formula, diapers and pillows to Louisiana. Each and every donation and person was pivotal and vital to the rebirth and regrowth of our beloved state and community. After Katrina, my opinion of athletes and their incomes changed quickly. I started looking into their charities, and many athletes, I found, regularly give back to the communities they came from. It’s awesome when someone thrust into greatness realizes that they have been blessed with a new platform for a reason, and chooses to make change. Ten years ago, our lives changed. And let’s just say it - it really sucked. But the support we received was amazing. I am very grateful to the athletes who stepped up, in a big way. The Red Cross estimated that 2 billion was needed for the relief effort. Professional sports, in a month, contributed a fifth of that burden, and was ready and willing to contribute more.

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We look at athletes oftentimes with rose colored glasses (or poop colored, depending on your stance). We think we know them, but maybe things aren’t always what they seem. After Katrina, we saw what really mattered to these athletes. Now, 10 years later, I am reminded of what it means to be a fan and a sports writer and why I love athletes, both on and off the field. My heart is warmed to know that, on and off the field, we are all linked by humanity. This month, as you remember, pray, or celebrate in your own way, take a moment to remember all of those who gave their time and money to help our communities stand strong again. They deserve our gratitude.

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The Water Mark Sometimes Hurricane Katrina seems to have happened just yesterday. When I venture out into Olde Towne, I still see this one house that needs to be repaired and it always gives me flashbacks of that horrible day. Other times, Katrina seems to have happened a100 years ago. I don’t see any more FEMA trailers. All the yards are landscaped with new trees and flowers. There is this one reminder of Hurricane Katrina that brings joy to my heart. Every time I look outside my office window, I see the water mark painted on the front of my neighbor’s building. To everyone else in town, it represents how high the water rose. But for me, it represents a wonderful couple that I once knew. This couple was a gift from God to all who knew them; and no one knew that better than me.

This story is about them. I thought long and hard and decided not to tell you their names. Both of them were very private. To be honest with you, it’s not important anyway. What is important is how they lived their lives. How they carried out God’s plan and how they showed their love to people in need after the storm. Both were in their mid to late 70’s and, for many years, their only income was Social Security. They only had one child. His name was Eddie and he was killed by a hit and run driver some 60 years earlier. They never caught the person who caused them so much grief. Whoever it was, they had long forgiven him. It was at that time they began an intimate relationship with God. Financially, they were very poor; but spiritually, they were as wealthy as two people could be.

For the sake of telling this story, I will call them Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie. Worrying is one of the areas in my life that I often struggled with. I’m one of those people that has to be reminded that God is in charge and He never wants me to worry to the extent that I do. It was about 5 days before that dreadful landfall and I was wondering how much longer I could go before I had to push the panic button. As it turned out, I didn’t have to wait long. The following morning, Margaret Orr made that decision for me. If there was ever a time to worry, it was now. As I made the short walk to work, I formulated a plan to evacuate. I knew I had a lot to do in a short period of time so I had no time to waste. No sooner had I opened the door when Mr. Otis walked in. I love this man for a million reasons, but that day I simply had

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too much to do to visit with him. He said he came because I was probably worrying about the storm and could use a prayer. I needed the prayer alright, but I wanted the Reader’s Digest version because I had a lot to do. Instead, I got the War and Peace version. I will say one thing about Mr. Otis - when he prays, he PRAYS. You may as well get a cup of coffee and pull up a chair, because it’s going to take awhile.

By the end of the day, they gave hope and love to a lot of people. Giving groceries is one thing, but to spend time with people in prayer is a whole different thing. Everyone really appreciated the groceries but it was obvious they were desperate for hope. Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie gave them that hope through prayer. They knew exactly what to say and who to say it to. Not only did they feed the people with food, they also fed their souls with God’s Word. They nourished everyone like they were new born babies.

It was now 8am and I hadn’t gotten anything done. I politely told him I had to start packing or I would never be prepared for this storm. He told me he understood and offered to help me. I declined his offer, telling him to go home and take care of his house and be with his wife.

On October 21, 2010 Mrs. Hattie joined Eddie in Heaven. The following year, Mr. Otis died. I went to his funeral in Mississippi, where they were from. To my surprise, he had quite a large family.

What he said next darn near took my breath away. “My house and wife will be just fine. Besides, she has about 100 bags to fill so that will keep her busy for a few days. I tried to help her but she said I wasn’t filling them properly. So I left and came here.” Mr. Otis spent the entire day helping me. I must say, he worked very hard. For the most part, all I could think about was poor Mrs. Hattie filling sand bags in the sweltering heat. By the end of the day, I was exhausted but Mr. Otis looked as if he was ready for another round. I thanked him and gave him a big hug. I told him I loved him and I would see him after the storm. I was sure when he got home he would find his wife lying on the sand pile dead with a shovel in one hand and a bag in the other. Thank God that didn’t happen. It was now four days since Katrina had visited us. Operation clean-up was already in full swing. It was mid-morning and I was sitting in a rocking chair in the middle of the street, taking a break. I looked up and here comes Mr. Otis. I thought to myself, I don’t need this today. Please God, not today. Any other day but today. As soon as Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie stepped out of their car, I knew something was up. They asked me if I would take the next day off and help make some deliveries with my truck. He looked down at my feet and had the nerve to ask me why I was wearing flip flops. Sarcastically, I told him, thanks to Katrina, I couldn’t find my shoes. I was already aggravated before they arrived. Now I was ready to jump off the first bridge I could find. I stood up and stared at my shop, which was nothing more than a pile of wet rubble. I agreed to help them the next day, all the while thinking of how many things I had to do instead. The following morning they arrived at 9am. Mr. Otis insisted that we take a picture of the three of us before we left. He also chose the water mark as the background. I got in the middle and put my arms around both of them. I can honestly say, I had my arms wrapped around two of the most precious people I had ever met. It was at that moment I had an epiphany. The three of us were going to have a great day together, regardless

I wasn’t there very long when a man came up to me and asked if I remembered him. I simply said no. He smiled and told me that Mr. Otis and I delivered groceries to him and his family after the hurricane. Then I remembered - the family of four, the first family we met. I asked, “How did you know Mr. Otis died?” of how many sand bags I had to move around. On the way to their house, I thought it would be fun to test his Bible knowledge. I would give him a certain situation and he would give me the proper Bible verse. I swear, that old man had to be John, Mark, or Luke in disguise. By the time we got to his house, I felt like I’d been to one of those old fashioned tent revivals. As we arrived, he asked me to back the truck up to the front porch. I noticed there wasn’t a sand bag in sight. For a moment I thought I misunderstood what I was supposed to be doing. But when he opened the front door and invited me in, nothing in this world could have prepared me for what I saw. Exactly 100 large brown grocery bags filled with food. So many thoughts went though my mind, I didn’t know what to say. Then I realized -- THESE were the “bags” that Mrs. Hattie had been filling, not sand bags. Mr. Otis told me that they just couldn’t stand that people were going hungry, especially here in Slidell. They wanted to help the community. Every bag had a hand-painted cross on it along with a bible verse in reference to fear and worrying. The bags were so big and heavy, we could only load 30 bags in the truck at a time. So we made multiple trips. Our first stop was off Ponchartrain Drive. Just as we turned on a side street, Mrs. Hattie spotted her first family in need. A mom, dad and two boys were dragging trash to the street. I pulled over and Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie jumped out. They gathered up the family and brought them to the truck. When Mr. Otis reached in the back to retrieve a bag, all Heaven broke loose. Mom and Dad began to cry, Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie began to cry and, before I knew it, I was crying too. The two boys were going through the bag as if it was Christmas. It was a beautiful sight to see.

“The same way as you, his niece called me,” he replied. The next thing he said literally made me weak in the knees. “Mr. Otis has been coming to my house every other Sunday since the storm to pray with us. We often shared meals together and talked about just how blessed we really were. It was he who kept my family in good spiritual health. I look at Hurricane Katrina as a blessing in my family’s life. Because of it, we were introduced to God, and to Mr. Otis and Mrs. Hattie. Because of him, I will be forever grateful for that storm.” There’s not a day goes by that I don’t look out my window and see the water mark. Time has taken its toll on the mark. It’s slowly fading away. I don’t know what I’m going to do when it fades completely or the building gets painted. It’s sure to be a sad day, because the mark is a reminder of the beautiful couple I knew and the love I had for them. But I will always have my memories of them. Those will never fade. The pictures in my mind of the joy on all those people’s faces will never fade. The lessons in humility will never fade. I too will be forever grateful for that storm.

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me Matthew 25:35

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Slidell Magazine was EVERYWHERE this month! Here are just a few of our adventures!

joys aff en zine st ature Park. a g a M N ose en dell T he Sli troll” in Salm a Bush and R ir n S n t & o t he “Shake ith writers D Cefalu to ge w e v , e a Kendr nd, join St are on! pe Sa Marie Shakes

and unshine day of s Pirogue l u if t u a a be erty Enjoying t the Bayou Lib d and Danna a n a m r A f riends k h Derric h utter Shop it w , s e Rac Slidell S Jean of HERITAGE FEST RO CKS! Louisiana’s most ta len fiddler wows the cro ted female wd in Heritage Park on July 4th

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Dawn Rivera an Morrow Sch d Kendra with neider & To ny W of Southern Wind C reati alley the final d ve on ay of Slide commercia ll Magazine’s l fi lming!

night! rked hard all WHEW! We wo and Love e in Slidell Magaz The staff of stuffing r te af e at celebr azines To Buy Local ag m e rds into th 6000 L2BL ca

A WE LL-D ESERVED Slidell He BREA get a quic ritage Fest board K! k cool dow m n f rom th embers He e misters l-r: Ron D ritage Park on Ju at ly 4th. avis, Bren da Case, R e n e and Sharr on Newto Arcemont, n

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