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Katrina families -- Habitat for Humanity Int'l 1
Katrina families
Rebuilding one family at a time
An eight-part series
Numbers will always be a big part of any Katrina story: the speed of the winds, the height of a tidal wave, the number of people missing and killed, the homes destroyed.
But two years later, the devastating numbers don’t mean as much as they did in the immediate aftermath. The science of a catastrophic storm gives way to the humanity. And rebuilding is a story told best on a smaller scale – one person, one family at a time.
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Waiting and working:
Debra Reid, a licensed paramedic and a large-animal rescue volunteer, and her four children share one room in a homeless shelter for a year, while waiting and working for a new Habitat house.
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A backyard wedding:
Samantha Bordages, born with partial arms and legs, is also a certified lifeguard, types 80 to 110 words a minute, using no special keyboard, and can help change a tire on the car when needed. She dreams of a backyard wedding at her new Habitat home.
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A home of her own:
Gisele Brown, 75, “hammered, painted, cleaned, scraped, caulked” for sweat equity for her Habitat home. After living 20 years in a mobile home which Katrina destroyed, she finally will be homeowner.
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Mom and daughter survivors:
Joy Velez and her 18-year-old daughter, Krystal, look forward to a new home next year. They say they’re the luckiest people in the world because they survive.
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New life and a house:
Cleve Baxley, a 44-year-old mailman, turned his life around after Katrina.
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Rent hikes follow storm:
Twins Elaine and Ella with their parents Joey and Kristen Maddox struggled to find a place to live after Katrina. The same apartments that were $450 before the storm are $800, with no changes, no renovations. The family of six will move into their Habitat house in December 2007.
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A storm and a stroke:
Russell Abbrecht survived a stroke and Katrina, but volunteers everyday to build sweat equity for a new Habitat home.
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On the roof with God:
The Reese family-- “While I was up on the roof during the storm, God and I had a talk. I made some promises.”
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About this series
For Habitat for Humanity International, Teresa K. Weaver, a senior writer/editor and Ezra Millstein, a photographer, traveled along the Gulf Coast in late July and early August talking to Habitat families--some waiting for houses, some already moved in. Surprised by the damage still left to repair along the Gulf Coast, they were also struck by the hope and optimism of the survivors they interviewed.
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