Inspiration from a City that is Vibrant and Alive

Over winter break, I worked as a long-term volunteer for a week and a half with the United Saints Recovery Project “long-term team." Although I did not lead any sites, I was a more permanent and internal part of the organization than any of the other volunteer groups who came to donate their time. Pitching in for anything that they needed me to do, I worked as the “night manager” once, as well as helping to shop, cook food, and accomplish any of the recovery work of the day. The actual construction/building work that I participated in included demolition, painting, scraping and cleaning the sites.

The most valuable lesson I learned from this trip was about the city of New Orleans itself and the people who live there. Although billed as “sin city” by many, the city itself is a vibrant and alive town—it doesn’t feel like a big city at all, but rather, a community of people who truly care about the place they live in. Although crime is fairly rampant, as are myriad problems having to do with corruption and recovery from Katrina, the people of the city have never given up and have never abandoned their home. It is inspiring in the most basic way—which is has a lot to do with why many of the long term volunteers told us they had come to United Saints, left, then couldn’t keep themselves from coming back.

A lot of what I gained from the trip was critical self-improvement. I had my outlook changed on a lot of things, as well as service trips and the service industry in general. Therefore, just brining back my knowledge and being myself will help me integrate the experience I had in New Orleans.

Although most of this was addressed in the introduction, I acted as a pair of hands for United Saints. We took what people had—or didn’t have—and built from there up. I did everything from repaint a man’s apartments which he was going to rent to gain extra income to rebuilding the upstairs of the church in which United Saints was housed to demolish a house that had been completely underwater during Katrina. By building on what the community already has, United Saints uses these projects to try and get Central City on its economic and social feet, in the interest of changing these foundations to reduce crime and make the community a better place for all to live.

I am most proud of the way that I grew as a person, seized the moment and worked together with Joe and Taylor. We made a lot of good friendships along the way, but I can safely say that without the two of them I would not have had anything resembling the fantastic experience I did have.