Superficially, things are returning to normal in D’Iberville, Miss. But beneath the newly shingled roofs and fresh coats of paint, evidence of tragedy remains.
It’s been seven months since hurricane Katrina brought devastation to this town. And though much has been done in the way of rebuilding, much more remains in need of repair.
With that in mind, Goodrich resident Michael Tison, along with 13 members of the Ortonville Baptist Church headed south March 19-26.
Tison, 37, is president and CEO of His 2 Overcome Adventure Ministries. Typically, he leads church groups on outdoor activities to strengthen their bond with one another. After Katrina, Tison began to consider another sort of activity; one that could be beneficial to both the group and others.
‘We just kind of felt the need,? said Tison.
Having worked with Ortonville Baptist Church previously, he decided to approach them with the idea.
‘Eight days, these men sacrificed,? said Tison.
‘We’ve had a lot of great groups,? said D’Iberville resident Will Schofield, who worked with Tison’s group. ‘I mean that. We’re blessed to have the kind of job where we work with a lot of really good people.
‘Mike Tison’s group had all that? one thing they had that not a lot of groups have is a lot of skilled help,? said Schofield.
Schofield, in conjunction with Brodie Road Baptist Church, has been helping with the reconstruction process in Mississippi since the storm hit. He said his pastor half-jokingly dubbed both he and his wife ‘ministers of recovery.?
‘There was a time early one where we could take just anybody and find work for them,? said Schofield, 38. ‘Just a helping hand, regardless of skill.?
‘There is still some of that …but for our part and for the focus that we have in our ministry and in our church? we’re to the point where we need skilled help.?
Schofield said what is needed now is electricians, plumbers, painters. ‘The skills that are necessary to actually complete projects that have been going on for several months,? said Schofield.
‘I worked closely with Will,? said Oxford resident Joe Tasch. ‘He’s got a long list of projects that need to be worked on.? A residential general contractor, Tasch has gone on several other His 2 Overcome trips and is on their board of organization.. When he heard about the Mississippi trip, Tasch,37, said he knew he wanted to be involved.
‘I figure I’m here for a short time and I’d like to help as many people as I can in that short time,? said Tasch.
‘It was a different feeling on this particular adventure, ? said Tison. ‘You went there knowing peoples lives were destroyed . You knew you were actually helping people.?
After arriving in the coastal town, Tison was initially surprised by its calm appearance.
‘At first you think it’s not too bad,? said Tison, ‘but then when you get inside’it’s totally gutted.?
Tison soon realized many of the homes he and his team were seeing, while normal on the outside, were essentially emptied shells.
‘The more you walked around and started examining things,? said Tison, ‘you look down and you just see people lives everywhere. Stuck in the mud, stuck in the bushes…the more you walked around the more you just couldn’t actually believe it.?
Tison commented on seeing what they initially assumed were parks sprinkled intermittently around the area. ‘We realized it wasn’t parks,? said Tison, ‘it was a missing building, a missing house, a missing business.?
‘Everybody’s handled it different,? said Schofield. ‘Folks are just trying to get back to normal, that can be a depressing thing I guess. There’s been a huge upheaval in peoples lives.?
Schofield lost his own home’which was being built about an hour north of D’Iberville’in the storm. He and his wife were building churches in Minnesota at the time.
‘The mood of the politicians is hopeful, said Schofield. ‘They see it as an opportunity to rebuild bigger and better.?
‘Not everybody is responding to this crisis like we hear about New Orleans responding,? said Schofield. ‘Not everybody in the south is whining and complaining about entitlements and what the government should do for them.?
‘This is an act of God,? said Schofield. ‘There’s nothing the government could have done to prevent it. How you respond to that says a lot about what kind of person you are.?
‘We’re moving on. I think that’s the main thing.?
Tison said he and his group worked from early in the morning until late into the evening.
‘We basically went down there expecting to accomplish one major project for the whole week,? said Tison.
Ultimately, the men completed four big projects? each involving tasks such as roofing, re-siding, hanging doors and electrical work? and many small ones.
‘In some cases we didn’t meet the owners of the homes at all,? said Tasch, ‘and other cases they were there every day? and so thankful.?
‘We worked dawn til dusk every day down there, with really the attitude that we’ve taken a week off from our jobs and our families, let’s get as much done as we can,? said Tasch.
‘What’s amazing about it is even though you did all that work, you barely feel like you made a dent,? said Tison. ‘You just can’t imagine it.?
People down there still need help, said Tasch. ‘If you can do it by volunteering or you can do it by sending money, they can use the help.?