[StBernard] La. Hope and Recovery Tour

[Westley Annis]

A year ago, only days after Hurricane Katrina and the levee breaches, George Stephanopoulos and I flew over southeast Louisiana for his Sunday morning ABC News program, This Week.  We flew over St. Bernard Parish, then completely under water, and were shocked to find only one crane working to close the gap in the 17th Street Canal levee.  Today we returned to both on foot.

 

The 17th Street Canal breach has been closed for months, and now a half-dozen cranes are working to make it stronger than it was before.  The neighborhood still shows clear signs of devastation, but there is also a spirit of hope and recovery.  I visited earlier this week with Jimmy Bergeron, who in the last few months has reopened his Lakeview gas station with the help of a Small Business Administration loan I was proud to fight for.  Jimmy is just one of many small business owners across our state who are putting in long hours and hard work to rebuild their businesses and communities, and I know his efforts will go a long way to giving hope to others looking to come home.

 

George Stephanopoulos and I then walked again through Chalmette, where I had visited just yesterday with Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada .  We noted how much had changed since we flew over the neighborhood one year ago.  The water is gone, and the street is lined with FEMA trailers of those who have already come back to St. Bernard to rebuild their homes.  One woman, Melanie, was kind enough to let us cool off in the shade of her garage while she told us about rebuilding her brick ranch home.  She raised a family here, and plans to stay.  She and people like her are beacons of hope for the community, showing the spirit of Louisiana by facing the challenges of recovery with a positive attitude and hope for the future.

 

Leaving St. Bernard, we stopped by the local Home Depot, which reopened today.  Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez and Home Depot CEO Bob Nardelli came to show support for the local staff and their stalwart manager, Mark Cuccio.  He grew up here, and knows how important this reopening will be for the community.  The aisles were already busy with customers buying supplies, new appliances, tools, or even just stopping to say “Thank You” like I did.  Home Depot has also invested a great deal to build playgrounds across Louisiana and support our schools.  They have demonstrated what a strong business presence can mean to a community like St. Bernard. 

 

People here need much more than just plywood.  They need certainty and reason for hope. Store openings help provide the services communities need to give their residents a chance to build their lives back.  Jimmy Bergeron’s gas station is a pillar of normalcy in a neighborhood that is now anything but.  They both remind us that businesses large and small – giant corporations and family-owned small businesses – will provide the economic backbone of our rebuilding.

 

In a few minutes, we will be landing in Beaumont , Texas , for the drive to Sabine Pass and the Cheniere Liquefied Natural Gas facility being constructed there. 

  Mary L. Landrieu