I have always been very eager to put myself in new situations and learn new things. New Orleans is certainly something different for me to experience. I have never spent time down south and I am excited to see the differences in culture and environment. While I have done some community service projects, I have not get gotten the opportunity to travel and spend multiple days on a project. Not only does this help me appreciate what I have, but it also makes me thankful that we have such a large group of students that actually care about what is going on around us. Many people sit back in their living rooms saying, “Oh how sad but thank God that’s not me.” However, this group of Union students wants to make a great gesture by actually taking actions to help with the aftermath of the disaster.

I am thrilled to be doing work that extremely hands on, something I find more rewarding than anything I could be doing to help sitting at home. I think it is important for me to be able to see firsthand what people have experienced in order to truly be empathic. While we have seen many documentaries, I believe that my knowledge in the topic will exceed anything that a book or movie would be able to teach me. Each person in New Orleans has a story to tell, whether it is the construction worker helping us out or it is the Sociology teacher from one of the local colleges. I have never been so anxious to hear stories and learn about lives and experiences much different than my own.

Since fall term has begun we have received so much education about Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil spill. There are always new topics to be discussed such as the psychological affects and the environmental affects. Not only has our readings and discussions made me realized how these two disasters, essentially, were “manmade disasters,” but it also opens my eyes to how unprepared our society is for “worst case scenarios.” I have really enjoyed getting a closer look at issues that America has been seemingly desensitized to. By traveling down to Louisiana I am only continuing this journey.