By William S. Peyko
Special to the Metro Monthly
Hurricane Katrina dealt a body blow to New Orleans a few years ago, but the devastation has largely been forgotten due to the war in Iraq. But the people of New Orleans remain in a state of disaster.
For two years, Rev. Ed Brienz has worked with various bureaucrats, government officials, church leaders, and just about anyone who would listen to help resolve the plight of New Orleans’ poor and elderly. He is part of a group seeking to return New Orleans’ homes to a livable condition.
Brienz first led a group of us to New Orleans in December of 2005, and we spent three days completely gutting homes. The people we encountered were from all walks of life. They thanked us for helping them in their time of need. We returned to Ohio on New Year’s Eve.
Sister Regina Zilinsky, who recently passed away, made us look like sissies as she tackled the gutting of these homes during that first visit. Brienz asked for volunteers again in June of 2006. A dozen of us answered the call, but this time a few Youngstown electricians and carpenters came along. These professionals were sorely needed: Anyone can gut a house, but it takes skilled professional to restore the shell. In October of 2006, another local interdenominational group went to New Orleans and gutted several homes. Now, Brienz is faced with a dilemma: Many homes are gutted and are ready for restoration. He almost has tapped out all the help he could get from people in the Mahoning Valley. He is now reaching out for help nationwide.
Still, another local group managed to travel to New Orleans from July 28 through Aug. 12 and another two homes were restored. It was asking a lot to have professionals work for free, but I can guarantee that they will never have a job that would be more rewarding than volunteering their skills for the poor people of New Orleans.
And the story continues . . .
On July 16, another local work crew met to finalize plans before leaving for New Orleans. There, three professionals made suggestions on how to best prepare two model homes for occupancy. In the vernacular of the young, I thought “cool.” We are going to construct instead of destruct. I wondered how much, we of limited skills, would be able to assist the professionals. Personally, I was looking forward to the challenge and I was hoping we would measure up to the task. I would have my answer soon.
July 28 arrived, and it was 4:30 a.m. The adventure was about to begin. Although it was tempting to stay in bed, I promised Father Ed, and someone had to keep an eye on Joe Fraser. I got out of bed and got ready to rendezvous at 6 a.m. in Austintown. Our destination was Nashville. Al Medvez, Fraser and I met in Austintown and traveled to Stow to meet the youngest member, Brian Gilmartin, a professional roofer and drywaller. Sam Williams, a local electrician, would be flying down to New Orleans, while John Pitzulo, an area carpenter, and his wife, Veronica, would be driving, making up the Youngstown contingent.
We arrived in Nashville at about 3 p.m. and made lodging arrangements. We ate, slept and left around 6 a.m. the following morning headed for out ultimate destination. As we later found out, Joe Fraser loves the 6 a.m. hour for traveling and working. We arrived in New Orleans around 4 p.m. with incident. We crossed the Lake Pontchartrain Bridge, which is five-and-a-half-miles long, in six minutes and 35 seconds. We went without lunch and expected to eat with Rev. Ed around 5 p.m. Instead, we went to Mass. Naturally, my cell phone rang during the service. We went to eat at Cici’s Pizza at 8 p.m. I wasn’t impressed with eating different kinds of pizza, but we were so hungry that we would have eaten wallpaper had they fed it to us.
We settled in Hope Haven, the residential base for our stay in New Orleans. The men were lodged in a dormitory, and Veronica and John Pitzulo had their own room. On Monday, July 30, we awoke at 5:30 a.m. to coffee and cold cereal, which would be the routine for the rest of our stay. We went to St. Raymond’s, the supply center, and wasted a couple of hours doing nothing. Finally, we left with another volunteer, Nathan Stein. Veronica Pitzulo, Gilmartin, John Pitzulo and I left to work on a home on Congress Street.
Sam Williams and Al Medvez went to Pauline Street to do rough electrical work all day. Veronica and I cleared debris and swept up rooms. The carpentry work was done by the other three. We also prepared the walls for drywalling, put up insulation, and installed plywood on all of the floors. Veronica and I left for Hope Haven at around 3 p.m. to prepare dinner for the crew. The temperature had been very hot all day, and a shower to get rid of all the dirt and sweat was welcome.
By July 31, plenty of progress was being made. All the plywood floors were completed and screwed down with the assistance of two 16 year olds named Max and Dave. I told someone that “one of the kids will help you” and Dave said emphatically, “I’m not a kid; I’m a man!” Ninety percent of the installation was completed.
Veronica and I had a system and it worked out to speed things up, but by 3 p.m. we were working on nerves alone. We kept at it until about 4 p.m., when we started to clean up. By this time, the house’s front bedroom ceiling had been drywalled and John and Brian kept working with the assistance of four or five volunteers.
That evening we had a pasta dinner provided by Catholic Charities. Veronica and I made sandwiches for the next day. Volunteers from Iowa brought corn which we all enjoyed at a corn roast on Thursday. It was a great experience working and socializing with all age groups from different parts of the country. When people complain about our youth and their insensitivity, just check out the kids who are devoting their time to help make New Orleans a better place for many of its people. When I run into people like that, I feel that we old-timers are leaving the country in good hands.
Aug. 1 – We arrived at Congress Street at about 8 a.m. and the other group went to Pauline Street to do the electrical work. Veronica and I completed all of the insulation with the assistance of the two 16 year olds. Drywall installation was much easier because we had the assistance of a machine to do the ceiling. The group completed two-and-a-half ceilings and one bedroom was completely drywalled. About a dozen workers cleaned up the yard, which took about four hours. At noon, we went to the house on Pauline Street. Lydia, the homeowner, made us fried chicken, dirty rice and beans for dinner. I have to say that it was the best fried chicken I had eaten since I was a young man. Lydia was a remarkable lady. Her husband was a triple amputee, her daughter was blind, and her son had multiple problems due to diabetes. Yet Lydia was a bright and cheerful person who did not seem to have a care in the world. I asked Lydia if she would be insulted if I gave her some money. She said she would be. She said God answered all her prayers by sending us to repair her home. This cynic had water in his eyes, and it wasn’t from perspiration.
Aug. 2 – We were on the job at Congress unloading the van at 8:30 a.m. and I became multi-talented in a hurry. First, John Pitzulo taught me to use a nail gun. He was very patient with us and his main concern was doing things safely. I put strips of wood onto studs. We put joint compound, or “mud” as they call it in the business, into the nail holes on the plasterboard. We also passed equipment, mud and tape to the men on ladders and scaffolds. We broke for lunch and continued with the mudding, preparing for tomorrow when the drywallers would put the finishing touches on the ceilings and walls. It was really great to be creating something for a change, instead of gutting. We prepared dinner and the Iowa team furnished corn to go along with the beans and wieners. We were eating quite well, but we missed Sandi, who was our cook on last year’s adventure.
Aug. 3 – Last night, I was informed that I was to go to Pauline Street to assist Sam and Al at Lydia’s home. Lydia had received some bad news: Her husband had to be admitted into the hospital just as her son was being released. Yet, she still continued to be upbeat in spite of everything. I was teamed with Al and we did rough wiring under the supervision of Sam. We accomplished quite a bit and at about 2 p.m. we went to Congress Street, where the woman of the house cooked us catfish with red beans and rice. As usual, it was great! It seemed as though all we did was eat. Tonight, we went to eat on the bayou at a place called “Des Famalies.” The eatery had authentic New Orleans cuisine. I had jambalaya, which was so-so. We had much better food on our first visit to New Orleans which was home-style.
We had the good fortune of having two crews from Iowa, comprised of female and male workers. This has really moved things along. Most of the drywall was installed and mudded and it would probably be sanded tomorrow. The rough electrical was done on Pauline Street, we would probably start our work there on Monday. Sam would be flying out on Saturday, because he has to return to work. He was leaving with mixed feelings.
Aug. 4 – We arrived at the job site at 8 a.m., but the equipment didn’t so Veronica and I walked around the area. We talked to an elderly couple who had just returned to their home. They told us of brazen lootings. A couple they knew had all of their household items stolen. The thieves drove up in a U-Haul and took everything. A woman and her son talked to us on the street. She and four of her family members had lost their homes. During our walk we met a man named Kevin. His home was the first one on the block. He said he mowed all the lawns of vacant houses on his block, stating that he was the president of his block. He had a white house just like President Bush, and he even had the flag flying full-staff. We parted company. I was just amazed at the resiliency of these folks.
We were dispatched to Pauline Street with the majority of the Iowans and we completely insulated the house by 11:30 a.m. Brian fixed the roof, and Liz and Nathan helped him. We are our lunch of sandwiches and did very little until about 4 p.m. When we were finished, we returned to Congress Street. The crew was putting their tools away, so we headed back to the barn. Veronica and I prepared dinner. I made a salad and we microwaved some pasta and chatted with Rev. Ed. John planned to have a skeleton crew on Sunday. Rev. Ed would say Mass, or “field Mass,” a term coined by John.
Aug. 5 – John, Veronica, Brian and I went to Congress Street at 7 a.m. We all did mudding until about 11:30 a.m. Rev. Ed showed up and held a field Mass for the four of us in Lydia’s trailer. [Field Masses are commonly held for Catholic servicemen while they are on duty.] After Mass, we joined the Iowans who were putting up the drywall. John had me draw sketches of the various electrical outlets to make sure they weren’t covered up. We sat around for a while, and then got trowels and covered up the nail holes. Around 4:30 p.m., we quit because we ran out of drywall. We went back to home base and prepared dinner, which consisted of burgers, beans and a salad. We B.S.’ed for a while then hit the sack.
Aug. 6 – We arrived at the house on Congress Street around 8 a.m. but no one was around, so Veronica and I walked around the neighborhood. We talked to a homeowner who thanked us for our efforts. Another person informed us that the authorities had recently found some body parts in a home. We went to Pauline Street and the rest of the group showed up. We had an abundance of workers. All the trowels were taken, so I swept until I took over the grass-cutting duties. The grass was really high, and I worked on it for several hours, then returned to mudding drywall.
While I was on a ladder, Rev. Ed introduced me to two female volunteers from Cleveland.
Those of us who had been to New Orleans on earlier visits noticed vast changes. More and more people were living in their homes. In addition, there was much more neighborhood activity. However, for the first-time visitor there would not seem to be that much of an improvement. On the way back to Hope Haven, I called my number three son Eric to wish him a happy birthday. I started to sing “Happy Birthday” to him and then the whole crew joined along with me. Something about being here: you really bond with one another.
Aug. 7 – We were at Congress Street at 8 a.m. and proceeded to sand down the whole house. The ceiling work was hard on the neck. The crew put paper and mud where it was needed. After we finished, we headed for Pauline Street. While we were on our way, a crew delivered and replaced some of the windows at Congress Street. At Pauline Street, we prepared the house for a second coat of mud. We boarded up the windows so no one would break in, and headed back to Hope Haven.
That night, we had barbecued chicken breasts prepared by Nathan and Lucas and corn left over from the roast. In addition to the corn, the Iowa group left us a watermelon. I didn’t get all the names of the Iowa contingent. Tom and Liz were a married couple, and Celeste was there with her husband. There was a girl who was going to participate in “American Idol.” She said she would be on when they broadcast from Omaha. I wished the Iowa group had stayed a little bit longer so we might have gotten to know them better. I forgot to mention that Lydia and her 9-year old grandson Jeremiah helped with the mudding. She was so happy with the progress and just beamed about how far we have come. She said she hoped her ill husband would live long enough to be in their home.
Aug. 8 – We were on the job at 7:30 a.m. at Congress Street. John had us sanding the whole house for several hours – all the ceilings and walls. The ceilings were hard to handle because we were sweating – the temperature was only 105 degrees! We were wearing masks and safety glasses, which steamed up and made it hard to see. John was going to spray the whole house room by room. The crew took turns borrowing water from a neighbor and feeding the sprayer. In addition, another worker and I had to cover the window with plastic. This was to protect the new windows from being sprayed. John completed the job in about an hour. Three of us then removed the plastic and cleaned all of the equipment, which took longer than the spraying. We finished at about 3 p.m. and then picked up the other crew and headed back to Hope Haven.
We did a little grocery shopping and lounged around until 5:30 p.m. when Rev. Ed was going to say Mass. During the service, when we were asked to pray for intentions, I said “I pray the Iowans go home . . . [there was a pause] . . . safely!” The workers broke up, and even Rev. Ed chuckled. After Mass, we went to Bourbon Street. We dined at a restaurant on the street and had traditional fare. After dinner, we walked to a place that served a special kind of doughnut, which Rev. Ed wanted. After doughnuts, we headed back to the barn. We said goodbye to our Iowa friends, as they were leaving at 4 a.m. I can’t describe how strangers that work together can become so close. It seemed as though we knew each other forever. A lot of hard work and laughter seemed to be the key.
Aug. 9 – Today, we are working with just seven people, which was a far cry from the gang we had all week. Five out of the group were mudding and Al and I were sanding. We were doing a lot of loafing and I guess it wouldn’t be much different on our last day. We loaded up all the unnecessary tools and had an early quit time. We returned to home base, and were informed that dinner was on Rev. Ed. I figured I was going to lose weight on this trip but with all of the eating we’d been doing, I think I was gaining weight. We were going to lose two really fun-loving women from Cleveland, Dana and Pat.
Aug. 10 – We stopped at Congress Street and picked up plastic for the windows and high-tailed it to Pauline Street where we sanded and taped the windows in preparation for spraying. The spraying started around 9:30 and we – ooops – had very little joint compound! [We professionals call it mud.] Two boxes were delivered just in time, and John got the job done. We then cleaned up the sprayer and trowels and loaded all the stuff in a trailer and returned to St. Raymond’s for a light lunch and speeches by departing volunteers. Amy, who the 16-year-old boys called “Xena the Warrior Princess,” became very emotional. She cried and you could tell she was sad to be leaving.
The house on Congress Street is a six-room home, and the house on Pauline Street had eight rooms. One room was 35-feet long. We made a conservative estimate of 880 worker hours. John Pitzulo was the driving force and glue that held it all together. Both homes still needed plumbing and finished electrical work. Both should be completely livable by October.
This trip was not for the faint-hearted. The heat was terrible, but on the upside, you lost some unwanted pounds. The place where we bunked didn’t have the best accommodations. In our case, we had three clothes dryers and only one worked for about 20 people or more. The kitchen area was a disaster: there was no sink, no stove, and the microwave ovens were tiny. Some of these problems should be corrected by the time the next group shows up. If not, just remember you weren’t promised a stay at the Hilton!
On August 17, we received that Lydia’s husband, Mr. Taylor, had died. His suffering was over.
Click HERE to see photos from their visit in December 2005.
