While most of the community closed their laptops in anticipation of enjoying their Holiday break, a dozen Notre Dame students, led by faculty members Mrs. Nora Moffat, Director of the Center for Global Leadership, and Dr. Pat O’Brien, Middle School Social Studies Teacher, opted instead to travel to New Orleans for a four-day service opportunity.

Hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans community nearly two decades ago, and the impact is still ever present. For the second consecutive year, ND coordinated a service trip to “the Paris of the South” to support the NOLA community in their ongoing recovery fforts. For junior Brooke Miller, one of the students chosen to participate in the service trip, it was one of the best experiences she has ever had.

The service opportunities we took part in showed me how important a strong community is in a person’s life,” Miller said.

The group’s first stop was at a local nursing home, where volunteers played bingo with the residents and had the chance to listen and learn about life before and after Hurricane Katrina.

Hearing the stories of the residents who lived in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, and are still living there now despite all the damage that was done, showed me a sense of love and devotion that I have never experienced before,” Miller said.

The following day took them to the Arc of Greater Nola, where they sorted Mardi Gras beads that were left on the streets after the days of celebrations. Students organized the beads so they could be sold next year, with the proceeds benefiting adults with intellectual disabilities.

Make no mistake – Mrs. Moffat and Dr. O’Brien made it clear to the students that this was not a trip where they were “swooping in to save the day.”

We [Notre Dame] can play a small role in helping the New Orleans environment post-Katrina, we can meet people who have lived there for their entire lives and learn from them, and we can come to appreciate and care for people in another part of our country,” said Moffat.

Moffat said that this trip took ND students outside of their normal routine and encouraged them to see America through a new lens, one that is both difficult and beautiful. The warm welcome they received while at Sunday Mass was Moffat’s favorite part of the trip.

There we were, not members of the congregation, let alone familiar faces in the community, and yet the welcome was so warm and genuine. They sang a glorious song that included the lyrics ‘We welcome you. We’re glad you’re here.’ and it made such a difference in how we felt being there in their church,” Moffat said.

The third service activity ND took part in was helping the Common Ground Relief Center in their process of growing hundreds of cypress trees from seedlings, which are native to NOLA and highly effective at carbon capturing. The CGRC is located in the lower ninth ward, which is the most vulnerable area to natural disasters and the section of NOLA most devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Common Ground will now be the beneficiary of the Center for Global Leadership’s annual carbon-offsetting donation, funded by ND parents who are given the opportunity to offset the carbon impact of their daughters’ travels during ND trips. Miller said that before this trip, she knew that the way of life in New Orleans post-Katrina was different from hers but did not realize how much her experience would have an impact on her. She never knew how to put herself in someone else’s shoes and show empathy without feeling bad for others.

I am one of 8 billion people living on this earth, and everyone is living this life differently. I hope that everyone gets an opportunity to feel this type of community and love I felt while I was in NOLA. This experience affected me in ways I never thought,” Miller said.

For more information, visit Academy of Notre Dame de Namur’s website.