ATLANTA—Two decades after Hurricane Katrina uprooted thousands, survivors in Atlanta continue to navigate their grief while building new lives. For many, helping others has become a way to heal the scars left by the catastrophic storm.
As Hurricane Katrina approached in 2005, the residents of New Orleans faced gut-wrenching decisions. Some chose to flee, while others braved the storm, thinking they would soon return home. For Bernadette Porche and her husband Albert, leaving was a reluctant decision. They packed their bags thinking it would be a brief respite, only to find their lives irrevocably altered when the floods engulfed their home and their beloved pharmacy in the 9th Ward disappeared.
“I had a life there. We had a business, and my friends were all there,” Bernadette reflected, struggling to find the words. “My church was there. I loved my church. It was a small neighborhood church.”
After finding refuge in Atlanta, the Porches bought a home near Cascade Road where Bernadette began to create a new community at St. Anthony of Padua Church. Connecting with others from New Orleans helped her navigate the loss. She has since fostered deep relationships, often making trips back to her hometown filled with laughter and memories.
“It’s not the material things in life you find out. It’s the people, the love and the caring,” she stated.
For Bernadette, her faith remains a guiding force in her new life. “This is what God is leading me to do,” she expressed, with a hint of playfulness about her arguments with the divine. “I tell him, ‘I don’t think so.’ But he has a plan, and he has a path for my life.” Albert passed away over a decade ago, buried in New Orleans, yet his memory remains part of her journey.
Father Jeffery Ott, now a pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Atlanta, experienced the storm’s chaos firsthand as a chaplain at Xavier University of Louisiana. As his family traveled to safety in Texas, he recalled the surreal sight of highways choked with evacuees, a scene he never thought he would witness in his country.
“It was surreal to see that many lanes of traffic filled with cars moving,” he commented. “Thankfully there was no standstills.”
Larry Soublet and Beatrice Perry also made the difficult decision to leave New Orleans in the face of impending disaster. Although Beatrice’s home remained intact, the storm destroyed Larry’s house in Carrollton, forcing them to rebuild their lives in Atlanta where they eventually married.
“In the end, all can be taken from you, but you just stand on your faith,” Beatrice stated, reflecting on her journey as a retired Catholic school principal.
She still carries a piece of her New Orleans heart with her, returning for joyous occasions, such as her wedding in 2014, before Larry’s untimely death in 2021.
Bishop John N. Tran weathered the storm at his parish’s rectory alongside his father and a deacon. Afterward, he found himself in St. Bernard Parish, where he witnessed devastation akin to his family’s own escape from Vietnam. The images combined trepidation and resilience as he comforted those displaced, collecting phone numbers to relay news to distant family members.
“I still had the badge for some reason. I still had the badge in my car,” Tran shared, describing how he leveraged his former role to enter disaster-stricken areas and provide support.
His time was spent aiding first responders and rekindling faith amidst destruction while grappling with the remnants of community ties.
Twenty years later, the echoes of that storm linger, but the community’s spirit, forged through shared loss, thrives. Survivors from both sides of this tale have taken their experiences and turned them into a beacon of service.
For the Porches, their new community became a source of support and outreach, with Bernadette joining choir and helping organize meals for those facing hardship on the streets. The Soublets initiated anti-racism programs at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, uniting individuals from various backgrounds for meaningful conversations.
Bishop Tran organized disaster-response volunteers, demonstrating that amidst systematic failures, the human spirit can still prevail. “I now realize that bonds of friendship, neighborhoods, family, social and cultural celebrations are the lifeblood for many New Orleanians,” he reflected.
While there are ongoing challenges in New Orleans, the survivors have found purpose through acts of service, drawing from their own pain to uplift others. Bernadette summed it up poignantly: “Gratitude is the only way to get through life.”
Service to others has become a way for many to honor their past, harnessing their experiences into fuel for healing and connection within the Atlanta community and beyond.
image source from：georgiabulletin
