When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast three years ago, Joe, Corey and I, as well as other members of the Ward, had the opportunity to go and do some relief work just five days after she struck. The following is an email I sent to friends of mine upon my return. It is an abbreviated account of my experiences. Please excuse the condition of some of the pictures as they were taken as we were traveling in the truck.We brought in supplies that so many of you graciously donated for this trip to families staying at our church in Waveland and distributed them. I cannot begin to tell you how appreciated and grateful these people felt.
To give you the short version of our trip...We spent the night with these good and humble people and had a tent donated for the three of us to sleep in. It was one of the worse nights I've ever spent in my life in many ways. First of all, I don't like to camp and here I was sleeping in a tent in the open, helicopters flying around all night, fear of looters, sirens in the night, etc. There were no working toilets, the flood waters had come into the church and so the carpeting was still wet and smelly, you had to wear your shoes at all times and wipe your hands constantly with wipes since there was no running water. Even if there had been, it would have been contaminated.
There were so many wonderful, spiritual, heartbreaking, tragic experiences that took place that is too numerous to write about here. Suffice it to say that this was one of the most humbling experiences I've ever had in my life. Whatever you've seen on television about New Orleans, or Gulfport or Biloxi is like heaven. Where we were, was truly hell on earth and the outside world has not really discovered its plight yet.
So many of you have said you wished you knew what you could do for people such as these and wanted to know what you could do. If you still feel that way, I would like to suggest something. Send me a money donation so I can turn it into something these people could use. We are all going back as soon as we can. Hopefully, in the next couple of weeks once we've gathered more items. We got the names, sizes, ages of the people we were trying to help out and we're using this as a guideline to purchase items they could use. They need towels, sanitized hand cleaner, baby wipes, socks, etc. These people have nothing. Before I left, I cleaned out my suitcase and gave away most everything I had. This included my clean underwear, an old pair of shoes given to a lady who had worn wet shoes and socks for 4 days, any medicine I had, tee shirts, etc.
I'm attaching pictures that do no justice to what we saw, but may give you an idea of how unbelievable this devastation was and still is.
The salt water hit the trees so hard and long, it's now killed the trees and bushes.
Some portable toilets - I would love to have had one of these.
Two of the many gas lines right off the interstate. Gas got more and more scare the further west we went until there no longer was none. We took extra with us so we could make it home. 
Some of the damage in Mississippi. 
This was one of the gas lines we sat in - this one for 1 hr. 35 mins. And, then we were only allowed to purchase $40 in gas and with cash. We still had gas in cans, but didn't want to use it unless we absolutely needed to. Therefore, we sat in this line as a little insurance for us.
Some of the mangled signs along the interstate. You couldn't even tell where you were as all the exit signs had been blown down. It was my job to turn around and identify the fallen signs from time to time. 
Gulfport, MS water tower. The wind has sandblasted the paint off of the legs of the tower.
People lining up to get water. Remember this is in the summertime in the south. It was hot!
One of the many helicopters we saw flying around for various reasons - body recovery, looters, etc.
Military personnel directing traffic in Gulfport since there was no electricity
One of the many cars the storm blew over on the interstate. We saw many, many vehicles which was damaged or had run out of gas.
This was an oil tank you'd find at a gas station that the wind had dropped on the interstate. It had finally been pushed to the side of the road.
A water delivery by helicopter in Kiln, Mississippi.
A car that had been blown into the trees
A boat that was blown into the trees
Highway 90 into Waveland, MS. Notice the depth of the mud and muck. Snow plows from North Carolina had been brought in to try and clear the roads. The smell was incredible.
Hundreds of overturned vehicles going into Waveland which is located on the coast and was virtually wiped out.
A neighborhood in Waveland near the church.
The church where we stayed. You could only enter on one side because a transformer pole was knocked down.
Neighborhood damage.
Train tracks were washed out from the storm surge.
A house that the storm placed in the middle of the washed out train tracks.
A mile in from the beach and no houses left standing.
Someones tool box and a child's picture left on a board
A family picture left among the debris. I just left it laying there - it almost seemed intrusive to disturb personal items.
Law enforcement was in the process of doing a body recovery when we drove by. 
Remains of the beach littered with items blown out of homes.
Items left hanging in trees - some 25 feet high in the trees.
The remains of the Waveland Cemetery.
More debris in Waveland.
One of the tents I spent the night in.
If you want or are interested in knowing more, contact me. Any help would be appreciated by those in Waveland.
May God bless us all and make us mindful of the things we take forgranted.
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Notes and comments from friends:
Carol, I am so glad you are back (safe and sound). It must have been a terrible sight, a really helpless feeling.
David's sister lives in Laurel, Miss. and she came home with her baby. No power, water, etc.She said she could not describe how really bad it was. Her husband's family lost their house and everything in it. Her brother-in-laws home had 3 large tree through it and they were trying to salvage what they could.
We sent a trailer full of water, diapers, gas, etc. back with them. Let your Church and it's congregation know they are making a difference in these people's lives.
Lynn Berryhill
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From Teresa Geary in California...
Carol,
The pictures make it so much more real! What an experience for you and your family.
I went through my closet this weekend and boxed up clothes, shoes, sunglasses, baseball hats, etc. I haven't heard of a location to drop these items yet. Everyone is asking for money which I made a large contribution to the Red Cross last week. It was easy to use donate my hair cut & dye budget as well as my yearly upcoming home improvements $. I assume that the refugees flown into Los Angeles will require assistance, which I am sure they will receive alot of. So I don't know if it will behoove me to send you these items, or make the drop in LA. I am more than happy to ship them your way just knowing that they will directly affect the refugees. I also want to get in my bathroom and pull together some of those 'gifts' that I never used. Body lotions and spray, nail polish, manicure sets...all that bath & body stuff that I can do without. If you want to take it....I'll ship this stuff.
I am considering opening my home to refugees. Heidi and Olivia just moved out two weeks ago, so I definitely have room.
I am so glad you are able to make the trip again. What are the gas prices in your area?
Let me know if there are specific items on your list that are difficult to come by. I may have something to send your way.
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This article came from CNN.com and refers to the town that we helped and stayed in.
WAVELAND, Mississippi (AP) -- Hurricane Katrina seemed to take a particular vengeance out on Waveland, Mississippi.
The storm virtually took out Waveland, prompting state officials to say it took a harder hit from the wind and water than any other town along the coast.
Rescue workers there Wednesday found shell-shocked survivors scavenging what they could from homes and businesses that were completely washed away.
The air smelled of natural gas, lumber and rotting flesh. (See the video of corpse recovery efforts in Mississippi -- 3:28)
"Total devastation. There's nothing left," said Brian Mollere, a resident who was left cut and bruised. Katrina tore his clothes off and he had to dig in the debris for shorts and a T-shirt.
Katrina dragged away nearly every home and business within a half mile of the beach, leaving driveways and walkways to nowhere. The water scattered random reminders of what had been normal, quiet lives: family photos, Barbie dolls, jazz records, whiskey bottles.
Fourteen members of Waveland's police department survived the storm by hanging on desperately to a spindly bush.
The town of 7,000 about 35 miles east of New Orleans has been partially cut off because the U.S. 90 bridge over the Bay of St. Louis was destroyed.
There is no power, no phones, no way out -- and nowhere to go. (See the video report of National Guard relief efforts in Mississippi -- 1:18)
State officials would not confirm a death toll in the town, but Mayor Tommy Longo estimated that at least 50 residents died, The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson reported.
City Hall is gone, with nothing but a knee-high mural of a beach scene still standing.
Mollere had set up camp on the wreckage where his family's two-story home and jewelry store once stood. A couple of chairs and a sheet of plastic protected him and his dog from the sun and spits of rain. Mollere doesn't usually smoke, but he sucked on a Kool menthol and collected bottles of whiskey and Barq's root beer that had washed up nearby. He recalled swimming out of the store with the dog as the water rose and finding shelter in a house that survived. "If it had been night, I would have drowned," he said. His 80-year-old mother did drown in the storm. She had evacuated with some family to a grocery store in neighboring Bay St. Louis. As her family members swam away to escape the storm, his mother, who used an oxygen tank, stayed behind.
Mollere's father was a local folk hero for being one of the few people to stay behind in Waveland during Hurricane Camille in 1969. The elder Mollere swam along and grabbed onto a white horse, and both were saved.
On Wednesday, Jim Clack held the hand of his elderly mother, Mercedes Clack, and led her through the rubble of her Waveland home. "You might fall, Mama," he said gently. Mercedes Clack, blocking the glare with wraparound sunglasses, said of her splintered home: "Oh, that was a beautiful house. Remember it?"
She brightened when she found an antique radio and a few of her jazz records. "Do you think they can be salvaged?" she asked her son.
Other sweaty, mud-caked survivors camped out in shopping center parking lots in Waveland and Bay St. Louis, some using tents or mattresses they had been taken from stores. People lined up to get ice and bottled water distributed by emergency workers.
Frank Lombardo said he and his fiancee, Bridgette Favre, tried to weather the storm in their apartment, but moved to a high school in Bay St. Louis when the wind and rain grew too strong. He said he broke into the gym's football supply room to find cloth bandages to wrap some elderly people's wounds.
Marcel and Shannon Whavers and their 2-year-old daughter, Ayanna, stood Wednesday at the end of the devastated bridge that connected Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian. They said they felt cut off from the world. "We're in trouble for a long time," said Shannon Whavers, 29. "What are you going to do?" said her 30-year-old husband. "We saw a guy just lying in the highway, not knowing where to go."
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emails to Jill Wood and back to me...
Hey, thanks for the reply to the email. We will be making another trip to Mississippi soon. In fact, it may be this coming weekend. It all depends if we can get enough things together and get enough of a financial contribution to purchase some items we want to take. Joe and I are totally tapped out after spending more money than we can really even spend. I know though that our Heavenly Father will and does bless us for our efforts. I do feel as though we've not done enough though and it's necessary to do more.
We had one of the most spiritual church meetings on Sunday in the midst of all the horror. Afterwards, I made hundreds of pancakes for countless people as my personal gift to whoever wanted to eat some. For many, it was the first hot meal they'd had in a week. I had taken my griddle and all the fixings for pancakes just in case I could do this and was eventually plugged into a power strip coming from the single generator and was able to cook.
Jill, you cannot believe the horror of it all. New Orleans, Biloxi and Gulfport were like heaven and Joe, Corey and I went to hell. I've now been suffering from something like "survivors guilt" since returning home. I've cried off and on yesterday and today. We welcome any help and contributions. We are trying to purchase washtubs and washboards and laundry detergent for one thing. What good does it do to have clothes given if not able to wash them. We have no communication with the people there since leaving since phone lines are still down. Even if the electricity does come on, it doesn't mean that washing machines will be available.
Gas was non existent the closer you went and we took all our own. A small miracle (one of many) occurred when it came time to go home and someon gave Corey about 80 gallons of gas. Combined with what we had taken and what we were given, we never had to purchase a drop the entire trip home. If anyone is interested in going and or giving, have them give me a call on my cell phone as we're still getting another trip together. We just didn't want to drop off stuff, say have a good life and leave. It was a humbling experience and makes you grateful for all you have.
Did all the pictures come through? If they didn't let me know that also.Thank you for being my friend. Carol
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Hi, Yes they did.
I was in Glennville yesterday and they had a truck theywere loading and I went to Family Dollar and spent $50 in diapers,clothes, socks, forks, spoons, wipes, etc and was talking with the ladyand come to find out she paints and will paint me a baby shoe for Cameron free for my donation. (Harrison had one and when I had Cameron the dr. had went into private practice and the other place had a patent onthe shoe). This shows you can never outgive God. They were marking down onsies and the footed sleepers to $2 so got lots of those. The lady doing said her husband is a dr. from there and went and called and said get things together these people are starving. Bob gave $200 at church Sunday so we are stretching, but also feel guilty when we have so much. Iwill just send you a check and you can purchase-however-if they will take items that I have left over from yard sale (like two of the smallold highchairs, clothes, etc I will get them to you)-just let me know. You are in my prayers for your safety as I know the water contaminationis an issue at this point. I will forward this to others--- Jill
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Hi,
Please send info about Hurricane efforts etc to my personal email at ----------@hotmail.com. Let me know how this weekend went--I spoke to our church this morning about our efforts and their help (our church is going to donate $300 toward our purchases). I will get you a list for the tax purposes later-anyway-I ended up singing a duet with the song leader( my firsttime ever singing in front of a church other than in a chior, playsetting-we sang Thank you Lord for your Blessings on me--our church hopes to also adopt a church so hopefully in that area -since we are actually in the So. Bapt Assoc. One from them (don't matter to me but you know how some folks are!!-but God loves them too. Ha-need a little humor!) Thanks for allowing me to be apart of this and I want to get copies of our pictures, news articles etc and have them laminated for Harrison and Cameron for their scrap books-I feel this was and is anawesome experience for them to learn first hand about what is important in life and about helping others. Like I said in church you don't need FEMA when you Jesus Christ on your side because he is the creator of all and can chose to destroy FEMA, GEMA and all the other alphabet when he so chooses and the Lord will provide for his people and I quoted Jeremiah 29:11- As you know I have been praying for a job closer to home, but maybe the Lord needs me here because I meet so many people just like you!! Take care and keep me posted. Jill
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Hello All!
I know it's been a while since I updated - needless to say, my life's been rather unsettled these days. For those who didn't know, I moved to Jackson, MS to work with the Mississippi Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church to continue working with the advocacy group Congregations for Children, as well as to develop the conference-wide response to children following a disaster. Things are going well, for the most part. Learning "traumatology" and the phases of a disaster have made for a steep learning curve, and many moments of panic. Luckily, I've made contacts with quite a few folks from the Jackson area that have made life easier.
On a personal level, another part of my life is settled - I found an apartment! I've been living with a co-worker who has a generous heart and a spare bedroom/bathroom. After being a nomad for 6 weeks, I'm finally moving into an apartment on Friday. It's a simple one-bedroom, but will serve my purposes perfectly for the next few months. My plan is to return to the coast after the new year. (Pending housing, of course.) Shadow (grey cat) will make the move with me - he's not getting along too well with Max's cats. Fox is fairly docile, and will stay with Max until I can reclaim him.
My new address:
Becky Trask
Ridgeland, MS 39157
Phone: 601
I thank you all for the many thoughts, prayers, and gifts that have been shared with me throughout this time. I am overwhelmed by the generosity and the love.
I wish you all well, and hope your life journey is calmer than mine. =)
Love, Becky
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Hi Becky:
Glad to hear all is going better for you. I can only imagine what you've been going through while I sat cool and comfortable here in South Georgia.
I did, however, make a trip to the coast to do some relief work a week after the hurricane hit and my son and husband have been back several times since then. I confess that I just could not bring myself to go back again. I experienced something like survivor's guilt and cried for a week after returning.
I went through Pensacola, Mobile, Biloxi and Gulfport on my way to Waveland, Miss. before anyone knew about Waveland. I have pictures and memories if you ever want to see them, but I'm sure you've seen enough probably.
Anyway, if there is anything I can do for you personally or that you need, please let me know and I will do my best to see if I can do it. I mean it. Good luck.
Does this mean you're no longer an Outreach Specialist? I was/am hoping to see you in Washington DC in December. If not, God bless you and I hope life improves for you. Carol
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Hey Carol -
I completely understand the desire not to return - I've made several trips back, and each time the destruction grips a part of me that I thought had healed. I would love to see your pictures and hear your stories - they are cathartic to hear AS WELL AS share.
I'm still working for the gulf coast ccr &r , but not the outreach specialist - Lisa Kuzma Crick has taken that role. We're attempting to salvage our R&R - our facility was flooded/ruined, so we're kinda starting over. I'm attempting to recover my data from my computer - it, too, was flooded, but rumor has it that hard drives can be restored. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I'll inquire about the training in December. If it's specifically for Outreach Specialists, I may not be able to be there. If a "back up" person can be sent, I'll try to get there.
How are things going for you & your program? I hope you are well...
Becky
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Becky:
Here are pictures I took while on my trip along the coast, mainly pictures of Waveland. If they don't come out, I'll try sending them again.
I will confess that I began crying when I read your last email. I cannot begin to tell you I understand what you've been through. I can only say that I understand to the smallest, tiniest degree what you've endured. How grateful and thankful I am to have been spared this pain. I hold my breath everytime a hurrican forms in the Gulf because we've been in the path so many times and then it has changed course. Do you realize that there are three Outreach Specialists/R&R's that are all in the same boat. You, Tricia at Eglin and me here in South Georgia.
Continued good luck. You could be like a woman I met in Waveland and have continued to check on...someone sent a "buttload" of thong underwear for the ladies to wear. She is very happy though that she finally moved into a FEMA trailer last week - along with 200 other ones in the middle of an open field about 50 miles away. But, she's grateful to have a lockable space, electricity and water.
I may be going back over to that area in a couple of weeks. My husband has been asked to coordinate work orders and he may be staying there for a few weeks doing that. I'll be taking him over (a 7-9 hour trip) and dropping him off.
Carol
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Carol -
Thanks for the pictures & the stories & for your compassion for my "neighbors." (My idea of neighbor has truly expanded during the past 6 weeks) May I share your pictures on my blog?
www.happyinthesun.blogspot.com
Even tears are a way of praying.
Blessings on you & your husband as you each find your own way to help.
Becky
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Becky:
You may certainly share my pictures.
I try to explain to people that no matter how bad they (the pictures) look, there is no way they can smell the smells, understand the depth of the piles of debris nor can they feel the aura of the environment in which you stand. Most importantly though, they cannot begin to sense the utter frustration of sometimes just making it mentally one day to the next. I have a great deal of respect for those, such as yourself, who have managed to make improvements from your losses.
Carol
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Thank you, Carol...
I was on the coast yesterday, having a staff meeting with Moore Comm. House staff, trying to reclaim some personal stuff from my office, and helping Lisa connect with NACCRRA software, etc. The repetitive prayer through the day was "if you haven't seen it, you won't believe it." nothing describes the destruction accurately enough, no smell is like what still lingers, and there aren't enough words bad enough to embrace the feeling of being there. I asked Lisa (who lives in Gulfport) if she ever gets used to it - she said - with a small gasp - NO. Each time I've been the smell strikes me first and then the debris, and then the loss - mostly, the loss of security, the loss of hope, and the loss of "normal."
I had lunch with my friends from work and one was giddy over something small that had happened, and apologized for being so excited about something so trivial. My first reaction was - it's the small stuff that makes life what it is. And we don't realize that until so many seemingly small things are taken away. Like the ability to drive down a street or through a drive through for dinner or a movie date or a fresh breath of air. These are things that we remember we've lost.
I do a good job of disassociating from the loss until I'm there. Until I hear my coworkers and friends talk about their personal losses. Then I feel guilty for having left, for having moved on to something "better" even if it is temporary, even if it is part of the relief effort. I feel guilty for not waking up there, every day. My guilt is only assuaged (sp) by the mere hint that i may be doing something worthwhile, after all.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me, and allowing me to share mine. I find that the moments of reflection hit me at random times throughout the day.
Becky
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Hello my friends!
Sorry it's taken SO long for me to re-surface after the wedding & move from Mississippi - you'd never believe how busy being un-employed was, and now, how busy being moderately employed can be. (Case in point - I still can't get my thank-you's done! They ARE coming, I promise!)
For those of you were there, thanks for celebrating our wedding with Max & I. We had an amazing weekend, and wished it could have lasted for a whole week - even for as long as we stretched things out, it still went by MUCH too quickly! For those who couldn't come - we missed you being there. Hopefully our paths will cross again soon!
Our honeymoon to the outerbanks was amazing - we went kayaking, canoeing, boogie boarding (for the 1st and ONLY time!) ... and drove up and down the islands to see all of the sights - birds, lighthouses, alligators, black bears... you name it, max could tell you where & when we saw it... i would ask you what it looks like! =)
We tried to capture as much of the honeymoon to bring home with us as we could, and apparantly, it worked - - - 'cause I'm pregnant! Yup, Baby Blalock is due April 23 (yes, that's 9 months and 1 day after the wedding for those who are quickly trying to do the math...) We heard the heartbeat yesterday morning, and now all holds are released on the self-imposed rule of "we're not telling people yet." Sorry we couldn't tell all of you in person or over the phone - but we're busily trying to adjust to the new reality of our lives! (Now can you understand why I can't get my thank-you's done? I come home from work & collapse onto the sofa, as soon as I've had my meal of the hour.)
I've been feeling good, for the most part - September wasn't anything I want to re-live any time soon, but now I've moved on to the "I eat ALL THE TIME" phase. It's actually a burden to have to eat as frequently as I am hungry, 'cause it requires more thinking ahead, especially when I'm at work.
I hope you are doing well - I miss you all, and hope to see you each soon! Much love - Becky and Max
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I had the opportunity of returning to Waveland a week later, but I mentally could not go. I had cried off and on for a week every time I thought about the condition of those we left behind. Corey and Joe did go back the next week taking clothing and supplies for specific families we'd met at the Waveland Ward. One of the ladies we'd met the week before died during the week from medical complications.
Though Corey and Joe went back again other times, as well as Nikki, I never returned.
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