We were especially blessed at D'Iberville to work with both PDA and the D'Iberville Volunteer Foundation.  Drs. Ed Cake and Irene McIntosh are gifted leaders who triage a constant flow of citizen requests, matching them up with available volunteers.

Many such needs are discovered by volunteers themselves as they do door-to-door assessments and talk with residents.  At the time of our visit, D'Iberville was in the process of its third door-to-door check-in with each household.  These personal contacts are deeply needed as months continue to pass.  Every Katrina survivor has a compelling story, so the assessment process requires special gifts of empathy and compassion.

We had the privilege of sharing Camp New Hope with the Indonesian Tsunami survivors featured at the top of the PDA Home Page.  They were wonderful people who worked with some of our crews learning basic building skills.  Their presence in D'Iberville was naturally a significant event and much appreciated by the residents there.

Until one explores the Gulf Coast region, it isn't possible to grasp the size of the area deeply impacted by Hurricane Katrina.  We drove for literally hours seeing devastation to forests, homes, churches, schools, bridges and businesses.  The size, duration and violence of the storm were breathtaking.

The other most surprising aspect of our mission trip was how warmly welcomed we felt.  The storm survivors we got to know were astonished that we would "leave our lives" in the midwest and travel there to help them.  Actually, we gained much more than we gave.  The most rewarding thing was knowing that one very dear couple would move into their home the day we left, thanks in part to the "finishing toches" supplied by our team members.  It was hard to leave!!!!  We think and pray about our new friends daily, and plan to return to Camp New Hope in the fall to continue the work of rebuilding.

As our fence banner said, "God bless you, D'Iberville!"  You're always in our hearts.

Cathy Yost
Team Co-Leader