Church group helps rebuild in New Orleans
by ANDREA KIMBRIEL Reporter

Andrew Geiger caulks siding on the New Orleans house repaired by the team from Zion Lutheran Church.

Members of Zion Lutheran Church in Clarence Center spent Feb. 17 to 21 repairing a 150-year-old house in New Orleans.

"It was like a skeleton. There were no walls," said Julie Ticco, a Williamsville North High School student who went on the trip.

The team of 14 youths and six adults installed drywall and insulation, and painted and caulked the house, which had been damaged by Hurricane Katrina. They were assisted by the owner of the house, James, and several of his friends.

"He was really cool," said Stephanie Clabeaux. He showed his gratitude by making them snacks, said Alex Tubbs. Both Clabeaux and Tubbs also go to North.

Each group member worked about 50 hours during the trip for a combined total of 715 hours, which the Federal Emergency Management Agency values at $12,512.50, said Kristen Arends, the church's youth director.

The team volunteered with Lutheran Disaster Response, an organization committed to providing long term assistance for the area. The recovery process may take 10 to 12 years, said Arends.

They stayed at a mission center for volunteers at Peace Lutheran Church in Slidell, La.

"James' house did not suffer the flooding that some areas did, but the roof was blown off due to the high winds, and then the rain just came in and rotted most everything from the inside out," Arends said.

James provided the materials for the work on his house. Arends said another group was scheduled to continuing repairs after they left.

New Orleans wasn't exactly what team members expected before their trip. Some conditions were better than they anticipated; others were worse.

"I imagined myself standing on a pile of rubble," said Ticco.

While that image never materialized, the impact of the devastation remains visible. Lines on buildings reveal how high the water rose. Businesses and homes are boarded up, and billboards are hanging because no one has had time to fix them.

"It's a lot worse than you think it is," said Nick Stroczkowski, also of Williamsvlle North. He said the group was told that government relief funding is mostly gone.

"Katrina isn't over. I don't hear anything anymore, and I just hope people didn't forget about it," said Ticco.

She said people could help assist the area impacted by the hurricane by spreading awareness about the current situation, donating money and supplies and taking similar trips.

"It's easy to think that because some of the typical New Orleans events like Mardi Gras are up and running that everything is back to normal. But it definitely isn't," said Arends.

In addition to Ticco, Clabeaux, Tubbs, Stroczkowski and Kristen Arends, others in the group were chaperones Adam Arends, John Christopher, Jeff Winzenreid, Linda Mosher, Paul Rickhold and Jan Rickhold, as well as students Jenn Fritts, Alana Christopher, Kelsey Connors, Peter Elliott, Andrew Geiger and Mark Schlewitt, Williamsville North; Stephanie Berland, Williamsville South; Lindsay Ziemendorf, Starpoint; and Chris LiPuma, a Williamsville East graduate who attends Erie Community College.