Monday July 30th

    Red Neck BBQ

All this hype about southern charm. And there it was, on the beach, in Bay St. Louis. For all to see and be seen. The classic latest fashion in beach BBQ pits.

And the entertainment - that came in the form of about four horses that came for a stroll along the beach at sunset. What a picture perfect moment. This horse was exercised prior to the stroll.

And so it was last night for my team from Naperville and its infamous leader - Chris LeGarde. Thank you for the invitation to supper. It was a superb evening on the beach. Great company, great food, great conversation.

The main topic of conversation was the gutting job on Waveland Ave., that day. The team was approached by a City employee and challenged very rudely about the task at hand - gutting. He asked who organized the job - they stated that "Kathleen Johnson gave them the Work Order". They did request an ID from the employee, who claimed to be from the Building Dept, which he failed to produce. The employee did make some disparaging comments regarding me personally on his way back to the car. Then, a second employee from the Building Dept appeared and, according to the group, was no more polite than the first. He, again, challenged the group on the pile of trash that was coming out of the gutted home and his concern for the ditch. There was no trash in the ditch. But they had carefully laid a mattress out to straddle the ditch. There was limited space to put the trash.

Yes, gutting produces a trash pile. The Mayor was quite clear at a recent Alderman Meeting about getting the trash to the curb. It will be on the minutes - he was very clear about his instructions. So why would anyone treat volunteers, who were toiling in this oppressive heat, in this way? They were clearing up a neighborhood public health nuisance and doing an excellent job. And, it is now done and all that is left is for trash removal. And, after two years, we still have multiple homes in Hancock County that have not been gutted. Just like New Orleans - progress is slow.

Not once did these City Employees thank these hard working volunteers who had come so far just to "help"? What happened to southern charm?

And, so I called the Mayor of Waveland and the Building department. The Mayor's answering machine picked up and I left a message. I did manage to contact the Building inspector and reported my concerns about his treatment of the volunteers and the disparaging comments to me personally. He claimed to be quite within his rights since I have a "Blog" . An interesting public relations stance on the part of the Building Dept. I have yet to hear from the Mayor. *G*

And what are these hard working volunteers going to do today. Well, in actual fact, this is a hot shot construction team and they are going to be building a home over on Jeff Davis. The owner’s wife is in the nursing home as she needs more care than can be given in a FEMA trailer. So, the goal is to have the home blacked in by the end of the week and moving forward towards getting a home completed so Lemuel can bring his wife home.

Another team of volunteers is over hanging 150 sheets in a home in Bay St Louis. They should have that completed by the end of the week. The fourth team has a myriad of work orders, about 20, for multiple small tasks all over Waveland and some in Bay St. Louis. They consist of debris removal, raking, mowing, painting and non-skill tasks suitable for youth groups.

The fifth team is over on the final touch ups to a black in near the Beach.

A sixth team is off, today, to work on Helen Peters home over off Lagan. A seventh team is off to do some vinyl siding on another home. An eight team is off to work on the warehouse in Long Beach and some painting. An eighth team is working on the warehouse here in Waveland.

Yeah for the Volunteers! We are going to rock and roll this week.

The warehouse project continues to thrive. Some of what is brought in is free, some has the shipping costs attached, and some we are selling for what we purchased the items for (shipping included). We will never come out even on this task as there is the usual "loss" on any load as some of the merchandise is damaged and not usable. And in some cases we override the "cost" and give the purchased items to resident. So far we have delivered about 8000 sheets plus of sheetrock. And that program is still rocking and rolling.

And it is a beautiful Tuesday morning today as I write this blog - today is going to be a great day! Today I am going to find that elusive rascal Rhett Butler - I just know he is here somewhere?

Sunday July 29th

    And there he was just strutting, against traffic, down the gravel next to 603 near Lagan St. Not the least bit bashful that it was 3 oclock in the afternoon and that he was creating quite a bit of interest from the traffic wizzing by at 55mph. And I didnt have my camera - not that it would have done a lot of good as he probably would have high tailed it to the tall grass at the edge of the road if I stopped to take a picture out of the window of the truck. No, I wasn't gettin out to track him down for a photo opportunity. *G*

What I do understand now is how they can travel upto 40mph. They stand very tall off the ground, when walking, on those powerful legs. I just developed a very new respect for the alligator. And, I learn something everyday down here.

What a week! We even got over to Helen Peters to get started on her walls on Saturday. The house and warehouse were pretty much in disaray after this week. But it was a full week with upto 200 volunteers per day thru the doors. No matter how hard you try - its difficult to organize 200 personalities to pick up and put back tools where they found them. Let alone remember to pick up after themselves in the house - every little bit of "trash" left means one of the full time volunters has to clean it up. Oh how to get that message out?

And Saturday night I was invited over to Chris LeGardes for a shrimp boil with the Carolina crew. I was a very pleasant evening sitting on the porch with Chris' sister watching out of the still enthusiastic volunteers from Carolina. Where do they get all their energy. Those pictures will be up on the home page in the slide show.

Today is a day of rest. Nothing planned except the dedication, at 2pm, of the Little Zion Baptist Church.

We have a house getting started for Lemuel Jones on Jeff Davis on Monday and a house gutting on Waveland, Ave. Next week is planned to be a "quiet" week. I am just exhausted and need a break.

And thats our Sunday - how is yours?

Friday July 27th

    A week of ups and downs.

One of my clients passed away this week - before we could get him a home. He laid in his FEMA camper for three days before someone discovered he was ill and they had to break in to get him. Elderly and isolated from neighbors who had evacuated or left the area - he is typical of the tragedy of elderly in FEMA trailers who are disabled.

And Keith Burton from Gulf Coast News lost his wife yesterday - the obituary appears on his website today. That was a real shock when I clicked on that link today.

The teams this week have rocked and rolled. The picture above is of David Gillum's home. We completed the black in of Billy Burkes home, we got the roof on the Simms home, and Eldon Thomas has pylons in ready for a house. And that added to the myriad of other work orders we achieved both with the in-house teams and the teams we matrixed into the camp from other camps.

The politics continue to plague the Hancock Long Term Recovery Committee. Complete chaos at the office, no top down leadership, and a complete lack of results in the last two years. Not to mention the bad habit of dismissing those who dare to stand up and question the non performing track record. For a funded operation, with paid staff - there is no excuse for the lack of production. Ten complete homes in two years is nothing to be proud of - it is a disgrace. The dismissive attitude of the leadership of the Board of directors - shameful. They maybe patting themselves on the back at State meetings - but the track record of lack of released funds speaks for itself. How many Red Cross grants in two years via the Hancock Long Term Committee? Six you say? The dwindling lack of participating Case Managers - speaks volumes more.

The "Camp" at Martin Luther King Park this week was a huge success. The County Line Church has developed a model for such events that will be followed by future teams. Check the Martin Luther King link on the home page.

Some kindly volunteers came in and organized the office here today. It had been a hectic week and the office staff of Mary and Erica were at Case Manager training this week. The office was a wreck. What good hearted souls from Mission on the Bay! Thankyou!

And so we move on into the weekend with more teams on the way - two of them skilled crews. More houses on the way up this next week.

County Line Church and Mt Tabor Church - you guys are awesome!

And how was your week?

Wednesday July 26th

    I was driving to Picayune last night with a load of storm damaged tools for a Waveland resident when I came across these horses outside Kiln. What a pristine setting. This ranch has done a lot of work since the storm and it is a show place these days.

The Mt Tabor church crew is doing a fantastic job on Hargett St., in Waveland. They are working on a new house for David Gillum, and a roof for Evelyn Simms. They are making great progress. Awsome for the crew when two jobs are so close and they can work in tandem. Its been so hot they have been working a split shift - taking off during the hottest part of the day. This is the third visit for this crew - I am so proud of them.

My other crew is doing a great job on multiple work orders including Martin Luther King Park. And best of all they are working on the Block Party/summer camp at the Martin Luther King Park - and it has been going over brilliantly. The organization of this church, County Line Church of God, for this weeks events is beyond belief and the gratitude of the children can be seen in the pictures. The park has been packed - and there will be a final night on Thursday night with a BBQ. My hats off to this church - you are so awsome.

The air conditioning at the satellite tents has been repaired. And thank goodness for that. Great timing!

Myself, I am beyond exhausted. The pace here is hectic and it goes seven days a week like this. People show up Saturday and Sunday without regard for the hours. Not sure why that is. We are going to close the office for a couple of days next week so we can catch our breath here.

I got new pictures up on the home page on the slide show - check them out.

I never did hear from City Clerk or the Mayor of Waveland, on their promise to come thru with a water slide for the back to school fest at Martin Luther King Park (at the last Alderman meeting). The Waveland Citizens Fund stepped in and gave $250 as did one of the residents who was at the meeting that night last week. Thankyou Connie - you are so awsome!

And if you have 200 people coming to dinner. You do not paint the bathroom floor with oil based porch paint. Ya gotta love the enthusiasm of the volunteers !

So, how is your week going?

Sunday July 22nd

    Yes, I know. I need to get my camera out. Well, I actually did. And I left it on the table near the office window when I had to crawl in the window after I had left the keys in the office. And there it sat, and there it rained. *G* It will probably be just fine after I get it dried out this morning.

What a fantastic week. I cant believe the work orders we plowed thru. And we had a skilled crew arrive late last night (returning crew no less!) and we are going to get started house building today!

But let me tell you about the great crew from the Episcopal Church and Mission on the Bay who came and organized this house yesterday. Not only did they organize the house - they finally got me a bedroom for myself. And how awsome is that! They will never know how much that means to me. I now have hanging clothes in a closet, my own personal fan, and a "life". They then proceeded to pick up and clean the rest of the house as it had been a very hectic two weeks here and we had not had time to take care of ourselves. But its all cleaned and organized. Tim, the cook, will be very pleased with us when he gets here today.

The Director of the Hancock Long Term Recovery Committee resigned this week. She had been under fire from several entities for the lack of a stream lined process for grants and other issues. There has been no official word from the Long Term Recovery Committee. No chain of command established up at Kiln at the office according to the reports I have received which include the list of those lining up for the "job".

God's Katrina Kitchen was denied use of the church property at Long Beach. I am in awe of the feeding frenzy on this saga. Katrina Volunteers Feel Unwanted So many do not understand that we have barely begun on this construction in some parts. I know I have 1500 Case files here for refurbishing and reconstruction. We have ten years to go. Cant be done without volunteers - wonder who they plan on building these homes with limited to no funds?

There is another crew due in here this morning. I need to get this office in some sort of order by then. I do know I need another legal size filing cabinet. The house cleaning yesterday resulted in a lot of "things" being put in the office when they could not come up with a plan for somewhere else. My fault - not the volunteers*G*

We have Blonde back for a couple of days while his owner is in Florida. She is such a neat dog. Her leg is doing very very well. Miss Kera Jean is pouting loudly as the volunteers moved her cage to a new location yesterday. She does not adapt to change well. Spoilt bird! *G*

And the really good news. The registration of the 501 (c) 3 is finally complete. It had been "open" and on file for a while while we rounded up the last residual paperwork - including an audit. And we came out whistle clean and we are on our way. Yeah! I am now, officially, the Field Operatios Manager for the Waveland Citizens Fund - which is the fiscal arm for this operation here named "Katrina Relief".

So, how is your weekend shaping up? Today its going to be a great day !!!!

Thursday July 19th

    Finally, after two years I had a group of Catholic volunteers! Yeah! And what a fabulous week it has been - talk about "gettin it done" !!!!!! They rocked and rolled thru the work orders. And, they made themselves at home at the camp with all those new bunk beds in place. And the air conditioner is working to-boot. Finally! What else can you ask for? Yeah for the team from Florida!

And for those of you who drop in here everyday - I apologise for my tardy blog this week. But it was extremely hectic between the volunteer projects and the warehouse distribution. Never ending fun here - work, work, work.

That was the good news. The bad news is that Clear Wire is down for the count for a while. Both the satellite at the Hospital and Bucaneer State Park got hit by lightning on the 4th - and they are out for good until they are replaced by modern technology. And that might, or might not, happen in the near future. Its not looking good. The service was free - so there is little incentive to rush into a solution at this time. Sigh

So, we are on a landline as Bell South does not have DSL here. Oh what fun!

And talk about fun - there was the Alderman meeting last night. Always interesting. And Public Comment - the meeting closes and there is enough of a time lapse to make sure everyone leaves excepting those asking the questions and none of it is on the minutes. Quite an interesting process.

Finally a cook. Well, actually, Eldon is staying with us while we build his home and he turns out to be quite the cook. He had evacuated and just wants to come home. So, here he is staying upstairs and having a great time of it I might add. I didnt share this with him - but I can see a lot of advantages to many rainy days during the building process if he continues to cook as he cooked at lunch time today. In fact - I am just really eating my corn bread and beans now as it was so busy today. But he is good - very very good.

Its been rain, rain and more rain all week. In fact it started Saturday and went all the way thru yesterday. Its threatening rain again for the weekend.

We have three teams coming in this weekend - we are going to be rocking and rolling this next week.

And thats been our week. How was yours?

Sunday July 15th

     I can't top this story from the SeaCoast Echo - The story of Big Bubba, Lil Bubba and some of the baby Bubbas'

It sort of tells the true story of Hancock County - the story no one wants to talk about. Its the story of the "Haves" and the "Have Nots". It is a story about inequity and disenfranchised communities. It is the disparity between those that frequent the Casinos in all their finery - and those that can not even afford the carriage ride to the front door for entertainment or to find employment. It is the story of those that belong to the exclusive social clubs set up for the Mardi Gras parades - and those that will never be invited to join. It is the difference between "This Side of the Tracks" and "That side of the tracks" that is snickered about at private dinner parties. It is the defining line for all the Board of Directors set up here in the county (I know of only one Board that brought in someone to sit on the Board from the other side of the track in order to assist them to move forward). It is the baseline for the fight between trailers and “real” houses – which is in reality an attempt at social cleansing. The ridding of the county of “trailer trash”. It is a blantant “Let them eat cake” policy.

Yes, this is reality here in Hancock County - and we as volunteers see it every day. We can "fix" the homes that are more deferred maintenance than Katrina damage. What we can not repair is the social inequity brought about by poverty, social profiling, and children that drop out of school far too soon to become the "Lost Children". And all the while we pass, every day, that little white church that sits on almost every corner here. What is that line about "The very least of mine"? It is from the bible right?

The question really is – what are we doing about this obvious disparity? Whose responsibility is it?

And thats our Sunday. How is yours going?