Volunteering with the Louisiana Just Recovery Network
By: Ethan Morales
Today we started day 4 of our New Orleans experiential learning journey. Around 8am we met in the kitchen to talk about the plan for the day. Everyone packed lunches and we made our way to our destination — the Louisiana Just Recovery Network.
Driving through New Orleans there is always stuff to look at. The roads however are nothing short of a ride experience! We talked about where we would be volunteering and what kind of work to be expecting. On the way we saw a sign about the “Faubourg Tremé” — a famous neighborhood in the city. Since the location was in a warehouse we were expecting lots of inventory checks, unloading/loading pallets and vans.
The warehouse was full of recovery supplies and equipment. They had all sorts of different supplies. Most of the supplies were items for self care and clothing. Some of the items were ones that gave you basic amenities such as a portable charger, a wireless lamp, fans, batteries for all items. There were some food items which included things like water, milk, hot chocolate mix, flavored water and different soda flavors.
When we got to the place they had a whiteboard with all the activities that would be done during our stay. It listed the bigger picture of the activities and what effects it would have on the community. There were three different groups of work. There were deliveries, sorting/inventory and making disaster/hygiene kits. To distribute to the community.
I volunteered to make deliveries around the area. The deliveries consisted of boxes of clothes for all ages and gender, IV bags and mosquito repellent. There were four locations in total that were assigned to us. Out of the four we gave two churches some boxes of clothing and mosquito repellent and the other the same with the exception of the IV bags. One of the locations sadly couldn’t house the donations due to flooding in the basement from Hurricane Ida.
After making the deliveries we all decided it was time for a lunch break as we all have been working since we got there. While having lunch the Co-founder of the organization wanted to talk to us about the history of the group. It originally started with a small group of people that wanted to help recover from Ida and give what they could back to the community at the time.
During the presentation they talked about key factors needed in disaster recovery. The term that they talk about most is Mutual Aid. The term mutual aid originated from a famous book named “Mutual Aid A Factor In Evolution” by Peter Kropotkin. The general idea of the term mutual aid is if I were to help you with your ordeals in return you’ll do the same in the future.
When the presentation was over we went back to the drawing board and crossed off what had been done and what still needed to be finished. After going through the list we were left with warehouse work and making sure inventory was done properly and everything was sorted and put in their designated areas. After about another hour passing we said our goodbyes and left around 3pm.
Around 5pm we met up downstairs in the lobby to head to our final activity for the day Jazz Music at a place called “Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro”. Right across the street was the place we had dinner. DAT Dog is a local place with all different types of hotdog meats. You can get anything from a normal hotdog to an alligator meat hotdog.
It was a good experience, the food was great. Then we went to “Snug Harbor”. The music here was such an amazing experience. The place is warm and welcoming.
