Postcard from New Orleans

Dec. 14, 2005
Dear MC Friends:

This morning as we headed back to the City Park campus, our leaders headed to a board meeting of the Jefferson Parish Council. At this meeting the three McDonough Leadership students — Kate Gemmill, David Brock, and Eric Johnson — were recognized for organizing our group and making the 20-hour trek to New Orleans to assist with Hurricane Katrina clean up.

Kate, David and Eric rejoined us after the meeting as we cleaned out the massive art department. During Katrina the plaster from the ceiling fell leaving piles of plaster, paint and dust on every surface in the room. We worked almost all day wiping dust off the desks, easels, stools, displays, and shelves.

We also moved the furniture into the hallway and disinfected it while another group swept the piles of debris and mopped the floors. After the floors dried we wiped down the walls and moved the equipment back into the room.

One of the highlights of the day was lunch. Just before we broke for lunch we learned a local church was providing meals for Katrina relief workers and citizens in need. We located a large white tent about block or so down the street where the meals were offered. We were all excited to see fruit, hot chicken and gravy over rice.

Anything was better than the heater meals that we had for lunch the day before. Heater meals — precooked meals that come with a water-activated heater — are a small step up from MREs (Meals Ready to Eat). Heater meals are barely edible, but far from good.

We wrapped up work in the art department soon after lunch and then we began smaller jobs such as cleaning out closets and sanitizing the fitness center.

We were supposed to meet with the police officers, firefighters and their children in order to present them the stuffed animals a Marietta Boy Scout Troop gave us to bring down on Wednesday night. However, we couldn't arrange it so they will be handed out on our behalf at a Christmas party next week.

On Thursday we will continue to help Delgado Community College try to reach its goal of opening its doors for the spring semester on Jan. 14. We also get to go to Bourbon Street to sightsee and relax after we complete another day of hard work.

• Manda

Manda Scheub is a sophomore from Grand Rapids, Ohio. She is writing a daily postcard from New Orleans to relay what she and the 37-person traveling party from MC are doing at Delgado Community College and in New Orleans from Dec. 11-16.

Marietta College students clean up the art department, wiping up and sweeping the dust.