[StBernard] This is being posted on nola.com...

[Westley Annis]

TO ALL,
 
Let me as specific as I can be- I have never lived outside of St. Bernard
Parish since the storm.  I do not own, rent, lease, borrow, etc. property
outside of St. Bernard.  My commitment to public service precluded any move
on my behalf, even when it cost me almost an entire year of daily contact
and involvement with my wife and children, a pass on an offer to
re-establish my 20 year practice elsewhere, and an open ended invitation for
free housing.  I say this not to boast but to put this issue to rest,
hopefully for good.  While I do not really believe that my choice in my home
is of a public interest, I will for the sake of clarity answer the question.
After our house sustained very substantial damage and after unsuccessfully
attempting to purchase a couple of homes that would be of sufficient space
for my family within our former neighborhood, we have relocated from
Lexington Place to Jumonville Plantation.  For the record, we like many
others were significantly underinsured on flood and collected minimally on
homeowners.  The purchase and repair and replacement and bringing my family
back has like many others has resulted in a less favorable financial
position than prior to the storm.
 
I do not wish for any different recognition than any other resident who has
experienced this disaster and recovery, but I do wish that the level of
viscious inuendo and rumor mongering would be isolated or eliminated from
the recovery.
 
I have always taken the position that people must do what is best for their
family- I would have had to walk away from my commitment to the office that
I was given by the public to do that.  Instead, I will continue to make St.
Bernard the right choice for my family and for those who choose to return
now and make it an option for those who wish to return in the future.
 
This recovery is about a group of individuals deciding to rebuild a
community family by family regardless of what the government at any level
does- for some, that proposition is too much to handle and that is ok, but
please understand that how one chooses to handle his/her recovery is a
personal decision that should not be justification to attack or hurt those
who take different paths to the same end of surviving and thriving after the
disaster.
 
Good luck and God Bless us all,
Craig
 
P.S.  For those of you who dare to engage on NOLA.com please convey the
accurate information if you would.