Home > Monday, October 01, 2007

Driving into the Sunset

Driving into the sunset, Green 5 sets out on the road back to Sacramento a day early… A tropical storm warning had been issued for heavy rains that are projected to hit St. Bernard Parish early Saturday morning.

We were out buying snacks for tomorrow’s trip when we got the call from our Unit Leader, Jeanine, telling us to get on the road by five o’clock at the latest. Camp Hope houses volunteers but also functions as a shelter for the Parish. Since a voluntary evacuation has been issued, Camp Hope needs to make as much space as possible for residents. Tonight we are headed for Beaumont, Texas, a four hour drive from St. Bernard.

The weather was fine for our last week of work. With plenty of volunteers and new NCCC Denver and Perry point teams to train we were able finish off our service year with a great sense of accomplishment, decking two roofs in four days.

On Wednesday night Duane, our site supervisor, had a big feast for Green 5 and Green 3 in the St. Bernard Parish park pavilion. He cooked a delicious spread that included fresh fruit and grilled bell pepper, pineapple and shrimp kabobs, rib-eye steak and stuffed tomatoes and mushrooms for the vegetarians. For dessert we had a big angel food cake topped with whipped cream and berries. Not even the ravenous mosquitoes could spoil the splendid evening.

We all gathered around the fire pit to share our least favorite and favorite parts of the project. Duane said a few words about our teams and our time together. We reminisced over some of the ridiculous situations we’d been through together, laughing so hard it hurt.

Joanna and Orlando joined us in the field for most of the week because the new teams took over the reception office. Jared (along with Sam and Nick from Green 3) even got to come out on Thursday so the whole team got to work together on our last day.

Similar to the last day of high school senior year, Corps Members had different expectations for this day. A few ambitious Corps Members wanted to see the roof finished by the end of the day while others, after 10 months of intense work, preferred that the day be centered around having a good time and making memories. Well, by the end of the day everyone had the best of both worlds.

We’d been sitting around after lunch saying how we couldn’t wait to go to the famous Willie D’s custard shop for ice cream after work. Just about the time when on an average day our energy level would start to lag, things started to pick up on the worksite. Once we realized how close we were to being done, we couldn’t just stop. But first everyone had to silently give their consent finishing this roof in order for it to happen—if only a few people put in the effort, it doesn’t work and the job doesn’t get done.

Leann was the boss, we all came to her with our frustrations and she worked through all the problems that came up. It was her drive that got us to finish the roof on our last day of service for AmeriCorps. And you know what? It probably was the most memorable day of service thanks to all the effort we put in up to the end.

That last day… It would be hard to imagine the feeling if you haven’t lived it. After four rounds of projects, you get used to finishing projects, but to finish the year is completely different. It doesn’t hit you right away.

Orlando certainly enjoyed being able to fulfill his wish of basking in the glory of being done on the roof on the last day. After filling in as a receptionist he was forced to accept the possibility that his last day would be spent in the reception office at Camp Hope which would be much less dramatic of a finale.

It wasn’t until the meeting after work at Willie D’s that Duane announced the news about the tropical storm and the possibility of evacuation. At the time it was very unsettling news because we were in the mindset of being done. As first responders to disasters we have no control over what AmeriCorps would have us do in a situation like that.

That evening the team went out to dinner at an amazing Thai restaurant in Metairie. We had a great time and did our best not to think about the uncertain weather. After all, 10 months of AmeriCorps pretty much prepares you for anything.

So now, driving into the sunset as the last few frills of WWOZ jazz music fizzle out over the radio, we say goodbye to meaningful work, southern hospitality and the incredible volunteer community that we have been a part of for months now.

We won’t fully comprehend how our time in the gulf has affected us until much later. Even though our work is finished, we still have a six day journey ahead of us and a week of reuniting with the whole Corps back in Sacramento.

- The Tribe