BHC's Mission to New Orleans
with Habitat for Humanity

October 8-14, 2006

Greetings from Russ Margo, a Baltimore native and America's Slowest Rising Musical Comedy Star.

Well, it seems it's my turn to add my thoughts to this blog we are sending from Camp Hope in New Orleans. Many of you know me as the guy who plays music and sings at so many of your happy occasions. For over 35 years I have performed at events and parties all across the United States and I have to tell you, this is the most fulfilling "job" I have ever undertaken. The weather is hot, the work is hard and the people, both residents as well as volunteers, are beautiful.

Here we are on our third full day. We spent it framing houses, actually we worked on two different houses. We did everything from just replenishing the building supplies to framing out walls. You may have seen some of the pictures that Rabbi has sent, and I have taken many as well...just don't know yet how to include them in this e-mail...

But I'll tell you this...the news, the videos and everything you have seen and heard do not do justice to the feeling of being here and seeing, not only the devestation but also the spirit of the people here.

Most of the volunteers, perhaps as many as 75-80% are in their 20s...but I have seen people in their 70s, itching and doing as much as anyone else here. But i think the young people are impressed by the oldsters that have come down on their own time to pitch in....it's a good lesson for them to see. I am very, VERY proud to be a part of this Baltimore Hebrew Congregation group (aka BH2 C or, Baltimore Hebrew Hope Corps).

We have put up siding, which was fun, but not when one of my cuts was only off by "that" much...it happened rarely, but I must confess, it DID happen. The food is what it is...not gourmet but it gets you through the day....we have also eaten in the French Quarter and that's been fun,but the big message is not lost to us. We're here for a reason....and the honest truth is we, and I think, all of the volunteers from all over the country and some outside the country, are getting as much out of this as the people we are helping. They're lovely people and I can't think of a better way to spend a week than this....Finding a way to help others and appreciating the good fortune I have had in my life throught my family and the people I love....

Now, that having been said I am looking forward to seeing you soon, and I urge you to consider coming down here and being a part of history...

Today was terrific. We woke up early (most of us around 5:30 am) in order to be ready to meet and depart for our worksite at 6:30 am. The sun was rising as we left Camp Hope for our destination, the Musicians' Village. We were deeply moved to see all that had been accomplished already and the number and stories of the families who have partnered in establishing new homes here as they bring the unique musical culture of New Orleans back to life. Because so much of the first stage of the village is already completed, our crew was assigned to a home being built on the outskirts. We worked together with a number of folks here on a team-building mission from Avaya technologies. We showed them what teaming is all about!

Our duties consisted mostly of siding and roof work. It was hot work, and the tasks were new to most of us. But we had good supervision (or at least, patient supervision) and we learned our tasks quickly and relatively competently. After yesterday, it was especially gratifying to know that we were building something rather than completing the destruction of what had previously been. And we were all plenty sore by the end of the work day (all right - not the 20-somethings, but let's not talk about them!)

After work, we returned to camp, cleaned up and hit the road again for the Garden District area where we visited historic Touro Synagogue. The new senior rabbi, Andrew Busch, began his duties at Touro 8 weeks before Katrina hit. Needless to say, his duties have been quite different from what he expected. But he loves his congregation and his people and is clearly devoted to the task of healing and rebuilding. Nonetheless, he was very honest with us about the challenges faced by the community and his thoughts as to tough decisions that will have to be taken. We learned greatly from him and were humbled by the stories he shared and by the commitment he displayed. He explained to us why it is so important for volunteers - and especially Jewish volunteers - to continue to come. We strengthen morale, the sense of community and the hope that a better tomorrow awaits. It was deeply moving to speak with him. We were only sorry that Rabbi Emeritus David Goldstein was unable to join us at the time of our visit, but we were pleased to receive loving greetings through his successor.

All in all, another meaningful day in NOLA. If it lacked in some ways yesterday's drama, it made up for that lack in what we were able to see as the positive product of our labors at day's end. We'll let you know tomorrow how much further we get!

Mo'adim b'simchah,
Rex D. Perlmeter, Rabbi

OK, the first thing I have to admit is that I’m one of those persons who naturally shrinks to the back of the room when the word ‘volunteer’ is uttered. That being said, and against every naturally instinct, when they asked for someone from our group to function as ‘Tool Captain’, when no one immediately stepped forward, I agreed to accept the position. Maybe I’d get to wear a special hat or badge, and anyway, Mike Gold had already offered to serve as team leader, which must have carried with it more responsibility. What I soon learned was that as Tool Captain, I’d be dropped off with the shovels, crowbars, sledgehammer and other implements needed to gut a home before everyone else.

So bright and early, I was left at the curb, along with the tools, of a modest brick home on a street of other houses, many of which had FEMA trailers parked in front of them. After sitting around for ten minutes, I decided to take a look inside of 2208 W. Christie, the home we were to gut. I only entered into the living room which was filled with a mish-mash of toys, clothes, destroyed hi-fi equipment, all seeming having been tossed around. It was a mess, but frankly not as bad as I had been led to believe it could have been at orientation the previous night. Two steps inside and I found a series of photos lying atop the destroyed entertainment system. These were in salvageable condition and I knew that photos were the one thing everyone would want, so I began to gather them.

Then I found on the floor a pair of girl’s glasses in perfect condition. The glasses evoked in me the image I’ve seen in many movies about the Holocaust that are so powerful. By no means do I mean to suggest that there is any comparison to Katrina and the Nazis, except it dawned on me the fragility of life as reflected in the common place. How in one instant, the normality of life that we take for granted can suddenly by turned on its head, perhaps never to return.

I decided it was best to wait for the rest of our group before exploring the house any further. A few minutes later, three people drove up and asked what I was doing. It was obvious they were the owners, and when I said I was there to gut there house, it was as if Santa Claus had arrived. The jumped out of their car and literally ran up to me. Dave, his wife Shawn and their 21 year old daughter Brittany couldn’t believe that after so long, someone was finally doing something to their home. I learned that they were now living in Lafayette, some 3 hours away and by chance, were back to look at their home. Fifteen minutes later, the rest of our crew showed up, and Dave, Shawn and Brittany ended up staying to watch.

Looking back, we did an incredible job, considering few of us had any experience doing this sort of work. By the time we quit, we had more than 90% if the house cleaned down to the studs. Their front yard was piled with the junked remnants of their home, but they were so grateful. Dave didn’t know if they would be rebuilding and moving back, though they all clearly expressed that desire. 2208 W. Christie was their home, and though we had begun the process of cleaning it out, we certainly couldn’t guarantee it would ever be their home again.

At the end of the day, our crew left and I waited with the tools (a captain does not abandon his ship) and spoke for some time with Dave and Shawn. They were so indebted to us for what we had done, but in the end, I felt like the one who had received the gift. I know in a few days, Ann and I will get on a plane and return to our safe, clean home in Baltimore. Our lives will continue in our home, but for so many down here, there lives will never return to what they were before Katrina. But for one day, I felt as though I was a part of helping one family get a little farther on the road to recovery. It is an incredible feeling. Sometimes, it pays to go against ones natural instincts, and actually say yes when asked to help. However, I still haven’t received my special hat or badge that, as a captain, I most certainly deserve!

We awoke early for breakfast and final orientation. Our bus was late, so we had time to come up with a team name - BH2C (the "2" should be an exponent) - "The Baltimore Hebrew Hope Corps." We arrived at our worksite half-an-hour after expected, but we were thrilled to find the owners there waiting for us. Dave is a nurse who rode out the hurricane at a local hospital, caring for and evacuating patients until four days after the storm. By that time, his diabetes had caused his feet to swell with infection from the toxic waters and debris so badly that he required hospitalization himself. Eventually, he healed and was reunited with his wife Shawn, his daughters Nicole and Brittany, his son-in-law and grandson. They have been living since January in Lafayette, LA, and despairing of ever returning home. This thought was particularly painful for them, as St.Bernard's parish is a generations-long home, where Dave's father and brother still lived and his sister is buried. Dave and Shawn lived in a trailer for 19 years before finally being able to buy their home four years ago. They worked hard in those last years making their house that home, only to have the hurricane and flood waters steal it away.

The house actually didn't look as bad as some of which we had seen pictures. But, as you can see, it was bad enough. The family had already removed some precious items, but the hard work awaited us. The stench, the crust, the mold, the rot and the cockroaches were enough to give us a sense of the power and the destruction of the storm and of the breadth of the work - both what's been done and what remains. As one of our crew members said today, "Now multiply this by 300,000!" By 11:00, we had carried out most of the remains of the family's possessions, helping them rediscover a small number of precious treasures. Then the tear-down began. After a half-hour break for lunch, we continued work until about 2:45 pm. Exhausted as most of us were
(except for the 20-somethings!,) I think we were all reluctant to leave. Our reward - by the end of the day, Shawn and Dave were able to tell us that for the first time they could feel a small bit of hope that one day the job WILL be accomplished and they will be able to return home. In this season of Sukkot, I find myself reflecting upon the ease with which I could say those words -- "I will be able to return home." My friends here and I will, God willing, do so in a few days. With your support and encouragement, we hope we can help the same be true for others for whom such a possibility feels, right now, so far away. So be safe and loving in your shelters and count your blessings during this festive season, as we are counting ours.

Kol tuv - everything good,
Rex D. Perlmeter, Rabbi

On Tuesday, we begin to work on the Musicians’ Village Project of Habitat for Humanity. This project was inspired and created by Habitat in cooperation with some of the lead musicians of our time, including Wynton Marsalis and Dave Matthews. It is designed to provide a welcoming opportunity for musicians to return to New Orleans and re-establish the land of Louis Armstrong as the fertile garden of musical creativity it had historically been. We are very excited to be part of both projects, about which you can read more at www.habitat-nola.org.

If all goes well, we’ll keep you posted with daily blogs and photos. Meanwhile, thanks for the encouragement and support – spiritual and material – which so many of you have provided. In celebration of Sukkot, we are here performing this mitzvah of providing shelter as proud representatives of the BHC community. With your help we are fulfilling God’s mandate to our patriarch Abraham and to us all – “h’yeh b’rachah – be a blessing!”

Mo’adim b’simchah – May you celebrate this festival in good health and joy,

Rex D. Perlmeter, Rabbi