TOM DRESSER

508-693-1050

(tomdresser@aol.com)

Thirty months ago today, on August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina ripped through New Orleans. Anyone who has seen photos of the area knows the destruction the storm caused. Anyone who has visited the scene knows how much work still has to be done.

Donna and Jaime Leon have been there. They spent a week in Louisiana working with four other Vineyarders to repair damage from the storm. Next Wednesday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m., they will share their story with the public at the Trinity United Methodist Parish Hall, right by the Tabernacle. This is a must-see event, with a PowerPoint program and vivid recollections of their adventure.

Donna and Jaime were part of a larger New England group that worked on four houses. “I finished so a woman could move back in her house,” Donna says. The woman had been in a Federal Emergency Management Agency trailer for two years with her grandson. Donna and Jaime did jobs such as sheetrock, tiling, grouting and painting.

“It was very rewarding,” Donna says. The organizers of the church-led group have made five trips to the New Orleans area, and already are planning their next trip in November. “I would go back,” says Donna, and more than half the group are repeat volunteers. “We went as strangers and came back friends,” she adds. The effort was part of the North Shore Recovery Relief Program.

On a much less noble scale, my wife Joyce and I were among the thousands of travelers stranded by the storm of Friday, Feb. 22. We endured a seven-hour weather delay in Philadelphia en route to New Orleans.

Our New Orleans visit included a tour of the Ninth Ward, the area hardest hit by Katrina. Entire blocks are wiped out, with only front steps or concrete slabs remaining. Minimal rebuilding is under way, but the morale is encouraging. The motto of the city is Re-New Orleans, and between volunteers and groups like Americorps and the Vineyard volunteers, there is an effort to rebuild the city. But it is coming from people, not the government.

We visited daughter Jill, who teaches fourth grade in East New Orleans, an area that was particularly hit hard. Her students had been relocated to Texas after Katrina, and only returned this past September. What a life-changing event.

For sports fans, the NBA All-Star game was held in New Orleans, the first All-Star game held in the city.

In other news, we ask you to turn your lights out. In an effort to raise awareness about energy use, Islanders are encouraged to turn off lights on Saturday, March 29, from 8 to 9 p.m. in honor of Earth Hour. Watch for more information in the coming weeks.

The Oak Bluffs library will have the lights off on Thursday, March 6 at 6 p.m. for movie night. Stop in the library to view their latest screening. Pop and popcorn will be available for audience appreciation. For more information, call the library at 508-693-9433.

Sherrie Christensen has arrived on Circuit avenue. She now works in the Coldwell Banker Landmarks office. We wish Sherrie well on her latest venture, and, for those who don’t know her personally, she contributes excellent articles to Martha’s Vineyard Magazine. She says her biggest challenge as a realtor is that as “a devoted yard sale junkie, I have to keep reminding myself: pay no attention to the cool stuff in the house; pay attention to the house.”

It’s school vacation week, and we know many people have headed south. Pat Kelley is enjoying the warmth of Florida and Sue Miller is savoring the sights of Mexico. Many educators consider the February vacation a milestone in getting through the school year, and we wish all our school friends the best.