ABITA SPRINGS, La.Ñ Zak Loris jumps off the porch of a nearly finished home onto the rain-sodden red and brown ground of Abita Springs, La. His unlaced boots, caked with mud, splash dirty water on his worn pants.

The sounds of drilling and sawing echo throughout the construction site. A black designer purse hangs above an unfinished staircase and a few pieces of busted plywood. Students straddle the rooftops under the hot Louisiana sun, fanning themselves with shingle scraps.

The hammering, laughter and 80s rock music almost make it seem like they arent in the most dangerous part of the United States. For more than two years, the smell of rotting flesh plagued the streets, and a barren St. Bernard Parish and 9th Ward leave heavy reminders of tragedy and death.

The crime rate couldnt discourage the 44 Syracuse University students who participated in Habitat for Humanitys New Orleans winter break trip from venturing across the country to help those in need.

I was shocked by how much still needs to be done, by how bad it still is here,Ó said Loris, a sophomore biomedical engineering major who coordinated this years alternative winter break trip.

The students who joined Habitat for Humanity this December helped build 14 homes with the assistance of workers from AmeriCorps.

Over the last several years, New Orleans has developed into a hot spot for community service, drawing the attention of celebrities like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, as well as that of college kids nationwide looking for an alternative trip during break.

With the effort from groups such as Habitat for Humanity, St. Bernard Project and AmeriCorps, combined with student involvement in other reconstruction organizations, the Big EasyÓ has taken its first few steps toward becoming the vibrant city it was before Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast more than three years ago.

Its up to the 20-somethings to rebuild this city,Ó said Kathy Phillips, office manager for St. Bernard Project, one of the leading volunteer organizations in New Orleans. Weve come a long way, but we still have so much further to go.Ó

For some, its too late

Loris joins sophomore entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises major Hari Iyer and junior accounting major Casey Harrington on the porch of house number four.

The three chat about a house that was set for dedication just two days ago for a quadriplegic former New Orleans resident. Loris says the man lost his home during Katrina and has been living in a trailer since the storm hit in 2005.

Iyer and Harrington break the tragic news to Loris: the man who was scheduled to move into his house by New Years died the Monday night that the SU students arrived.

Loris, stunned, holds his hand to his mouth.

The only words he can stir up and force out: Oh my God.Ó

Loris brushes the sweat off his face, paces for a minute and goes back to work.

Rebuilding the destroyed communities of southern Louisiana and Mississippi has been a tough struggle for many of the organizations involved.

Not only have more than 40 percent of residents left the area and have yet to return, but one in 25 residents of New Orleans are still homeless, according to reports published by USA Today. A study conducted by Unity of Greater New Orleans found that 80 percent of those homeless in the city have some sort of physical disability and 40 percent are mentally ill.

The same week that 44 SU students traveled to help give homes to 14 families, an entire block of St. Bernard Parish was evicted from their Federal Emergency Management Agency-provided trailers. Phillips witnessed a Section 8 call the Wednesday the SU students arrived Ñ something that remains a disturbing sight for her.

A Section 8 is a government order to vacate provided housing. In the case of St. Bernard residents, the housing is the FEMA trailers that residents have been living in for more than three years.

They called everyone out and had them line up outside for Section 8s,Ó Phillips said. Its sad that after all this time, people are still living in trailers, then they just take them away.Ó

Phillips said that the residents who are evicted from the trailers are given a check to find other housing, but rent has skyrocketed since Katrina, and many senior citizens and disabled persons struggle to find housing, if they find it at all.

On top of everything else you have to worry about, you have seniors and disabled people with no place to stay,Ó Phillips said.

St. Bernard Project is currently working on a new project to find temporary housing for people who are kicked out of their trailers because of Section 8. St. Bernard Project celebrated the completion of their 156 home this December.

Despite all the help, Phillips said that it will be at least 10 more years until New Orleans even resembles the city that it once was.

Until then, many of those trying to help, like Loris, may find that all too often its too little too late.

The uncertain, but promising future of a city

Kayleigh Minicozzi went to New Orleans with Habitat for Humanity last year before she graduated from SU. The images of desolate and decrepit homes still linger in her mind. The miles of empty streets, abandoned homes and broken-down communities left her emotionally distraught.

Minicozzi didnt plan on going to New Orleans or joining Habitat for Humanity. It started off as something to do over the winter break Ñ nothing special.

But what she saw pulled her into a world of poverty and desperation Ñ a place she said is unfamiliar to many SU students, including herself.

Its important for people to see Ñ especially for students from affluent neighborhoods,Ó said Minicozzi, a former newspaper journalism and womens studies major at SU. People forgot about the South Ñ they moved on, but its still bad.Ó

The debris was still intense when she got there, she said, even though it was more than two years after the storm. Small memorials lay where houses once stood. The water lines paint the buildings throughout the city and boats still drop anchor in the streets.

This is not living, this is nothing,Ó said Luis James, a New Orleans resident who is still living in a trailer provided by FEMA in the yard where his house used to be. Gangs (have) taken over and there just isnt enough good cops to stop it.Ó

New Orleans was named the most dangerous city in the United States in 2008 by the Congressional Quarterly Press, with the highest crime rate of all the cities in the U.S.

The conditions in St. Bernard have not changed much over the last several years, but many charities, like the Alibrandi Catholic Center of Syracuse, continue to help the citizens of New Orleans.

Freshman magazine major Yelena Galstyan joined the Alibrandi Catholic Centers New Orleans trip blind to the impoverished and crime-stricken conditions of southern Louisiana and was anxious about the trip.

I havent told my parents that its the most dangerous city, and I dont think I will,Ó Galstyan said. I saw the coverage of Katrina on TV, but you dont see it until youre there. Until youre placed in that situation, no one fully appreciates what they have.Ó

It goes beyond a winter break trip for students like Minicozzi. Now a year after her trip to New Orleans, Minicozzi is considering joining Teach for America, a program that places recently graduated students in low-income school districts. Minicozzi plans to request the New Orleans area.

Theres still a haze over the city, but if enough people just give it a chance then we could make a difference,Ó she said. Dont rule it out as a place to go after you graduate.Ó

The media may have moved on, but people are flocking to New Orleans, especially students. St. Bernard Project is overwhelmed with volunteers from universities across the U.S. during spring break, Phillips said.

Theyve gotten sick of the typical, lets go to Miami and get trashed routine,Ó Phillips said. She has been blown away by the efforts of young people and hopes that they continue to show interest in rebuilding New Orleans, even if the media have turned away.

Students like Minicozzi and Loris prove Phillips right, leading the crusade to save New Orleans one house, one family at a time.

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Published on January 13, 2009 at 12:00 pm