This scene is typical of the damage. Notice the jack-o-lantern in the window. Through it all, most (victims and volunteers) managed to keep their sanity and a sense of humor. This is in downtown Ocean Springs. The Catholic Church is one block away and received very little damage. What made the difference was the elevation. The church was above the level of the storm surge.

This one was destroyed. The commode is still fastened to the floor.

That's the spirit! This house wasn't damaged as much as most of the others in this neighborhood. It sits a few feet higher than the surrounding homes.

An apartment or a motel must have been here.

Here lies a once proud lighthouse.

It is about a mile to the water.

There isn't much left of this pier. There are pelicans perched on the posts in the distance.

Tent City

This is our original Mississippi home. We are situated in a soccer field beside a church in Gautier, Mississippi. When hurricane Katrina passed through there was about three feet of water covering the field.

Our "street" address
Kathy and I had a tent to ourselves as did the other married couples, but the singles slept four to a tent.

It's time to get up and face another day.

One luxury we had was hot showers. Kathy has just had hers.

Here is the nerve center of our efforts in Mississippi. The Christus Victor Lutheran Church generously allowed the use of their facility. Some of their members also volunteered here as well. This fellowship hall was converted into a combination soup kitchen-distribution warehouse. The eating area is in the far right corner. Volunteers are sorting donated supplies to be given out. The rest of the church was used as a shelter housing about a hundred people. This is where the work crews were based. There was also a shelter for displaced pets.

Workers are unloading another load of relief supplies.

Katie and Carrie are busily going about their jobs. 

We are trashing out a house. The flooding ruined the drywall, insulation, carpeting, etc. These kids worked really hard.

Amblyn and Stephanie enjoy a break from work down by the bayou. This is in the back yard of the house in the previous picture.

We are just about finished. The only major thing to do is remove the refrigerator. The debris is piled within 15 feet of the street so the trucks can pick it up.

I am cutting into the ceiling between the first floor (garage) and the main floor to get the wet insulation out. This picture was taken over three weeks after the hurricane. Notice the water running down at the right side of picture.

We finished early and had time to relax before supper. Here Elisha is playing with some crabs by the gulf.

We slept here the last few nights.