Tuesday, April 8th

Second day of work is often the hardest day of work on a Mission Trip. The newness of the place we're visiting, the excitement of travel and settling in, and being introduced to the worksites are all in the past, and participants face the work that was there long before they arrived, and that will remain long after they leave. So it is with our NOLA team. On both of our sites in the St. Bernard Parish, our teams are working on hanging dry wall, mudding, sanding, preparing surfaces for painting. It is "slogging," repetitive work, and it's easy to see why it takes so long for rehabbed homes to get rehabbed.
But then, there are places like Habitat for Humanity's Musician's Village. As the Big Easy slowly came back to life, musicians were among the first to return, and several partnered with Habitat for Humanity to create this funky little center. Nearly as critical to this city's rebirth as the reconstruction efforts is the commitment by those who make its culture unique. New Orleans wouldn't be New Orleans without the musicians, the restauranteurs and the shop keepers. They say that less than 40% of those kinds of businesses are open now two and a half years after the levee breaches, but they are coming back.

The stories here are remarkable, as are the people. Today we challenged each other to not come home until we each heard one resident's story of the storm and flood and recovery. We will have so many stories to share when we get home.