BikeKatrina 2008 Update!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
We made it! Rebecca and myself are extremely encouraged by the tremendous amount of support we have received throughout the course of our cycling journey through the Gulf Coast.
For BikeKatrina 2008 - the aim was to honor the victims of the storm during the 3rd anniversary of Katrina and empower our neighbors in the region to do their part in protecting the wetlands. I think that we tried to carry out our goal with passion, dedication and humility. Hopefully, some of our photos illustrate our rigorous effort. Click Here To View Photos From BK2008.
[Becky greeted by well wishers on the Ocean Spring Bridge to Biloxi]
This trip would not have been possible without the sacrifices made by Rebecca Reindel - who resumes her public health graduate studies at George Washington University on Monday. She gave up a lot to join our efforts one week before her classes start. A special thank you to the 7 nuns at the Monastery of the Visitation in Mobile, Alabama for their amazing hospitality, the Holiday Inn and the congregation of Saint Mary Margaret in Slidell for housing us.
Much appreciation to Whitney Fauntleroy, a graduate student at The Princeton Theological Seminary and her church Davie St. Presbyterian in Raleigh, North Carolina for all of their generous support. Much love to Nancy Nordtvedt & the Holy Family Church’s social justice committee in Chicago, looking forward to hosting their youth group next year. And lastly - our BikeKatrina Coordinator, Jamison Brewer a 2nd year at University of Michigan Law School. He was responsible for putting the pieces of our trip together and did a great job!
RESSURECTING PASCAGOULA MISSISSIPPI
Thanks to Mrs. Darnell Cuevas, Principal of Resurrection High School, for allowing us to engage her students on Wednesday morning about civic engagement and service-learning. I told the students that they could tell their parents to purchase compact florescent light bulbs as a tangible action that individuals can take to protect the wetlands. The less fossil fuels we burn, the less melting that takes place in the poles - the less our sea level rises. BNO friend Katie Del Guercio did the research for our coastal restoration awareness campaign!
It was great to meet with Ward 4 Councilman Frank Corder in City Hall Tuesday afternoon. We had an informative discussion about the status of recovery in Mississippi’s “Flagship City.”
NEW ORLEANS KATRINA COMMEMORATION
Yesterday, I spoke to grade school students, neighbors, and community organizers who gathered for the 3rd anniversary of the storm. As a member of the ARC’s Hurricane Gustav Evacuation Support Team I talked with them about emergency preparedness.
