We made it home safely Sunday night. Friday went much the same for us - fixing up the mudding job so the foundation would be more suitable for the next team that worked on her house. We quit early because part of the PA team had to start driving back. I tried to find another job the boys and I could work on in the afternoon, but it had already been completed so we got the rest of the day off. I looked through several books on Katrina to see if I wanted to buy them and watched a pseudo-amateur DVD on the storm one of the team had bought. A couple of us went to buy some fresh shrimp for an after dinner snack and then went driving around Gulfport a bit until it was dusk, hitting the beach before returning for devotions and shrimp. They were good - and cheap compared to up here. I brought some home to have after Samuel is born.
Saturday the remainder of the PA team left for the NO airport and we went over to Hancock County to visit a house I had worked on. They had received less than $17K between FEMA and insurance though they had 8 feet of water in their house and lost everything, but they had been approved for an SBA loan so their home was in beautiful condition now. They let the boys swim in their pool while we chatted for a couple hours. They shared some things you normally don't get to hear about. Some people are taking advantage of the church groups, waiting around (sometimes for long periods of time) to get "freebies" when they have the ability to pay for the materials. Most people have not risked rebuilding yet either because the zoning/building codes still have not been solidifed yet in many areas. However, there are a few houses that have been put up on the coast. We also visited the family we provided Christmas presents for and they were back in their home doing well. Then I let Stephan drive for the first time on the road and we drove out and back on US 90 and visited the mobile home Merrie and I worked on before we came home in Dec. Margie was back in it though she had lots of problems with the people she hired. At least she was lucky enough to get the work done even if it was pretty shoddy at times. Many people have been just plain ripped off. Fraud remains a huge problem, not only from shady contractors but also from those spending their FEMA money inappropriately. Significant efforts to crack down on both are in effect.
Here are a few pics from the coast. This one shows a cross someone made from what had been the floor beams of their house.
This one below shows the remnants of one house while another is being built in the background. The weed growth makes it look like Katrina happened years ago.
The last one I took on this trip reminds us of what we are there for...
... to provide the hope of Jesus to a broken people.
Saturday the remainder of the PA team left for the NO airport and we went over to Hancock County to visit a house I had worked on. They had received less than $17K between FEMA and insurance though they had 8 feet of water in their house and lost everything, but they had been approved for an SBA loan so their home was in beautiful condition now. They let the boys swim in their pool while we chatted for a couple hours. They shared some things you normally don't get to hear about. Some people are taking advantage of the church groups, waiting around (sometimes for long periods of time) to get "freebies" when they have the ability to pay for the materials. Most people have not risked rebuilding yet either because the zoning/building codes still have not been solidifed yet in many areas. However, there are a few houses that have been put up on the coast. We also visited the family we provided Christmas presents for and they were back in their home doing well. Then I let Stephan drive for the first time on the road and we drove out and back on US 90 and visited the mobile home Merrie and I worked on before we came home in Dec. Margie was back in it though she had lots of problems with the people she hired. At least she was lucky enough to get the work done even if it was pretty shoddy at times. Many people have been just plain ripped off. Fraud remains a huge problem, not only from shady contractors but also from those spending their FEMA money inappropriately. Significant efforts to crack down on both are in effect.
Here are a few pics from the coast. This one shows a cross someone made from what had been the floor beams of their house.
This one below shows the remnants of one house while another is being built in the background. The weed growth makes it look like Katrina happened years ago.
The last one I took on this trip reminds us of what we are there for...
... to provide the hope of Jesus to a broken people.
posted by Michael Ray at 1:41 PM
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