Members of the Seekonk Congregational Church will pack memories of helping Hurricane Katrina victims, and observations of the Ninth Ward, as they conclude their mission.

12:13 PM EST on Friday, February 24, 2006

BY KAREN A. DAVIS
Journal Staff Writer

NEW ORLEANS -- Hope and faith motivated 33 volunteers from the Seekonk Congregational Church, United Church of Christ to travel more than a thousand miles to help in the hurricane-relief effort.

And hope and faith, they discovered, is what keeps the city going, six months after Hurricane Katrina did so much damage.

The group, which ranges in age from 11 to 81, traveled more than 35 hours over two days, by bus, to get to New Orleans last weekend.

In Louisiana, they have slept in close quarters at the Little Farm Church, a sister church in a western suburb of the city.

Today, after a final prayer session, they will conclude their mission and leave for home.

The Rev. Marilyn E. Ricci and the Rev. Daehler Hayes organized the trip for the confirmation class, but opened it to other members of the church because of the magnitude of the need.

This is the first intergenerational trip sponsored by the church, whose guiding principle is that helping others is the very essence of Christianity.

There have been challenges.

Volunteers had to wait in line for the church's two showers and three bathrooms. They slept on cots or on the floor in sleeping bags and air mattresses.

There have been sacrifices.

When church volunteer Brett Hawes laid off his team of carpenters for the week to make the trip, three of the four decided to come with him. Businesses and individuals in the Lakeville, Mass., area donated $1,425 to pay the fee for the men to go.

And John Kingsbury, of Lakeville, who is not a member of the church, said he just had to come along too. "So much got taken. I meanthis is such a little piece to do."

There have been moments of inspiration.

The volunteers put a new roof on a house belonging to Charles and Dani Wagner. The Wagners had considered abandoning it because the insurance payout was not enough to do the necessary repairs.

"It's unbelievable," Charles Wagner said yesterday, looking up at his new roof. "This is just so great -- all these people donating their time and energy."

There have been unexpected expressions of gratitude.

A taxi driver pulled over in front of Cafe du Monde on Wednesday morning, rolled down his window and asked volunteer Russell Jennings, "Where are y'all from?"

"We really appreciate y'all for what you're doing down here," the cab driver said. "I just wanted to say thanks."

A strip mall manager who found eight volunteers playing Ultimate Frisbee in his parking lot, across from their church home one night, called out "Are y'all the Yankees?"

"We are the Yankees, but we don't like the Yankees," quipped Justin Graham to the delight of the other volunteers.

The manager said he just wanted to thank them for what they are doing to help rebuild New Orleans.

And there have been heartbreaking experiences.

The group walked the hardest-hit Ninth Ward this week and saw for themselves the unimaginable destruction that they said even pictures did not properly convey.

The confirmation class heard firsthand the survival stories of students and teachers of St. Stephen Catholic School, which is in an area that was relatively undamaged in the hurricane. Adele Foster, who is confirmation class member Ryan Heelan's aunt, not only teaches at the school, but has taken several students into her home so that they can continue their education. She arranged for Camp Katrina volunteers and her students to meet.

Alexis Turner, 11, who had a role in the movie Big Momma's House 2, which was filmed in the city, was overcome with emotion as she told her family's story.

Their home was flooded and they evacuated to Texas. Her family struggled to find an apartment; her mother was laid off from her job at Tulane University in January; and her uncle is still missing.

Kirsten Jones, 11, said her family evacuated their home and drove to Dallas the day before the hurricane struck. When they called home to check on her uncle, the roof blew off his house while he was on the phone and the line went dead.

Foster said she wanted the volunteers to understand that the hurricane affected people all over the region, from all backgrounds.

It's clear that New Orleans will never be the same, but a change to something different is not always entirely a bad thing, according to the Rev. Wilmer Brown, pastor of Central Congregational Church there.

Since Katrina, the parishioners of his all-black church have been worshipping at St. Matthews, an all-white sister church three miles away. Both churches have begun "aging out" and are struggling to recruit young members, Brown said.

Last month, instead of holding separate services on Sunday morning, the pastors decided to hold a single service, and take turns giving the sermon each week.

While some church members are reluctant to merge, fearing that they will lose their identity, Brown said the ministries of both churches may become stronger by joining forces.

At the end of their final workday in New Orleans yesterday, Brown climbed aboard the bus.

"I just want to thank you all for all that you have done for the city of New Orleans and for this church, in particular," he said. "It may seem insignificant compared to what needs to be done, but we really believe you have made an impact because of the work you have done and your presence in being here."

Just before the bus pulled out of the neighborhood, heading to the French Quarter for a final good deed -- they were going to help a church parish sell hot dogs in a fundraiser (and maybe catch a Mardi Gras parade) -- Brown had one last thing to say to the group: "Continue to live out the Gospel."

kdavis@projo.com / (401) 277-7353

MULTIMEDIA: See more photos of the church group's activities and audio reports from Journal staffers Kris Craig and Karen Davis, who are traveling with the church group, at:

http://projo.com/campkatrina