Editor’s note: Tobey Pittman, project
manager for Operation NOAH Rebuild, is in the habit of writing one of
the following vignettes a day.
Rebuilding hope
In the heart of the city there are those who have lost heart.
Thirty-seven years of living washed down the drain – at least that is
how Jean Hebert saw it. His house was half gutted. He was still hoping
to salvage a few pieces of expensive furniture that had been
underwater for days. He had worked hard for all that he had and did not
want to let go. No one had the heart to give him the bad news: it had
to go.
Jean recounted how he had raised his family in this house. His
son, who is now his neighbor, chimed in, “That was my room there; my
sister was there; my parents here. We had a lot of fun growing up
here.”
Jean hardly remembers the fun – he only experiences anger when he goes into this shell of a house.
Jean is asking Operation NOAH to help him rebuild his
house. It is a big project. The bricks and sticks needed for Jean’s
house are easy compared to the renewal needed for his heart.
Many people have not coped well with their losses. Some languish
in despair. The greatest contribution your rebuild team makes in New
Orleans could be a rebuilt life.
Rebuilding people
When Les Fogleman talks about his hurricane experience, his
emotions are just under the surface – even after a year. He volunteers
as a chaplain for Operation NOAH Rebuild – an effort to rebuild
New Orleans! But Les is a survivor of Hurricane Rita – the forgotten
storm. Les’ personal experience has caused him to be pro-active. He
makes sure that others do not go through what he experienced.
Les is all about relationships. He emphasizes to all volunteers
in the Volunteer Village how important their works, words, and presence
are to those who were wiped out by Katrina- but Les majors on
relationships. He stresses the importance of asking obvious questions
and doing obvious things. He emphasizes that to minister effectively on
the ground you must ask, “How are YOU doing?” and you must “put an arm
around someone’s shoulder to listen, to hear, and to pray.”
Les’ wisdom came through experience. As pastor of Johnson Bayou
Baptist Church (one mile from the gulf and twelve miles from Texas),
Les worked alone for three weeks before help came. He moved storm
debris one wheelbarrow load at a time.
“I felt left out, like people were not interested.” His piercing blue
eyes glisten with emotion as he says, “I still have a nagging
disappointment that no one was interested in how ‘Brother Les’ was
doing.”
People across New Orleans suffer that same abandonment and
loneliness. Your missionary service will make an eternal difference in
someone’s life. NOAH is really about PEOPLE.
Rebuilding life
All hurricane rebuild requests are important! Some rebuilds play your
heartstrings, some pull, but others YANK. You just never know whom God
will place in your path when you make yourself available to serve
through Operation NOAH.
Deborah is terminally ill. She is a hurricane victim. She only
had weeks to live when the opportunity came to assist her and her
husband.
The question had to be asked, “Why rebuild the house of a terminally
ill woman who has only weeks to live?” The answer came from Deborah’s
own mouth. “I don’t want to die in a FEMA trailer.”
Volunteers usually think they are coming to help. Most often they leave helped.