From Denver to New Orleans

This week I joined the Earth Oneders and so far so good. I am really excited to be on the team because I’ve never done construction work before and this round we'll be working on a house destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. On Monday, we departed Denver and traveled through Texas, stopping in Amarillo on the first night and in Tyler the second night. The third day we finally arrived in New Orleans to a beautiful two story blue house. The first night we were here we had dinner in downtown New Orleans. This is my first time in New Orleans and I'm really excited to be spending the next two months here. I am very excited to learn about the culture in New Orleans and to visit some awesome museums.

On Thursday, our first work day, we had orientation and then we took a drive around the city. It is very emotional to see all the destruction that Katrina caused and the work that still needs to be done to repair it. Today we were trained to use all the tools that we will need on the job site. Our sponsor taught us how to use both hand tools and power tools. He knows a lot about rebuilding homes so he will be a good teacher for me and all the other members on my team. Our sponsor also showed us the house we will be working on for the next 6 weeks. Only the framing was salvageable, so we'll have to replace the wood eaten by termites, replace the flooring, add the walls, and all the other things that make a house. We will hopefully get most of the house completed before we leave.

~ Maria B.