Hurricane Katrina tore through several states in August of 2005, decimating what stood in its path. Now, almost five years later, there is still much relief work to be done before things are restored to how they were before the storm hit.

The week of July 18th, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church took four members to Ocean Springs, Mississippi to aid victims of Katrina. Stan Easton, Randy Mellen, Bryan Elam and Mitchel Godbey stayed in Ocean Springs for a week, volunteering through the Lutheran Episcopal Services in Mississippi (LESM) at Camp Victor.

The group from St. Luke’s worked on two houses while there.

“It was interesting to get to meet the people we were helping and get to talk with them about their experiences,” stated Godbey.

Though they did have to opportunity to talk with the owners of the homes, the majority of their time was spent laying tile, putting in insulation and fixing the roof on one of the houses. Don Harris, an electrical engineer from Nashville helped the St. Luke’s volunteers with the more technical aspects of their tasks.

This trip was the first for high school students Elam and Godbey, and their experiences had an impact on them.

“Just knowing that you’ve helped someone, you know someone who has just a lot less than what you have, it’s a good feeling,” said Elam.

At Camp Victor, the volunteers stayed in what used to be an abandoned garment factory. The building was renovated by volunteers and now has the facilities to hold up to 220 volunteers at one time. Those staying at the camp include both groups and individuals.

Unfortunately, LESM will be shutting down operations at its two recovery camps, Camp Victor and Mission on the Bay, at the end of August due to a lack of funding. Though they will not be taking on any new projects, they do hope to be able to have enough donations to finish the projects they have already begun.