The Forming of the New Waveland Café
Also note:
Arjay has posted his account of happenings at
http://newwavelandcafe.blogspot.com/
and Lisa put her account at
http://maw150.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/20/141213/598
Hawker’s is at
http://ashevillecommunity.org/hawker/katrina/index.html
With a page of pictures at
http://ashevillecommunity.org/hawker/katrina/gallery.html
Silashundt's Pictures from The New Waveland Cafe are at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/new_waveland_photos
An interview Hawker did for WPVM in Asheville conducted by Barry Summers.
Right Click and "save as" to save on your computer
wpvm_interview.mp3
More interviews from The New Waveland Cafe.
http://www.indybay.org/news/2005/09/1769727.php
http://www.indybay.org/news/2005/09/1769117.php
Flux Rostrum's video (no longer available)
FluxRostrum-REMAResponseWavelandMissahippie175.mov
When Katrina hit the Gulf Coast we were all amazed at the
images and stories coming in via various means. As the magnitude of the disaster began to sink in I started
receiving phone calls from around the country from my Rainbow friends
suggesting we go down and feed folks. What a great idea I thought. If anyone
knew about keeping people healthy in a primitive setting and dealing with
creating refugee camps it was Rainbow. Add to that that we knew each other and
how to work with each other already and we seemed like a natural. The mission I was about to undertake will
change my life forever, but I didn’t know that then.
After much planning, phone calls and fundraising Arjay,
Scot, DragonFly and I left from Asheville NC on Saturday September 10th. Much later than we planed, but prepared to
feed the mass and meet up with other Rainbow Family kitchens heading down. Word
was that we were setting up on a military base in Louisiana for the Black
Caucus. After talking with that crew
Arjay and myself felt that was unlikely to happen anytime soon so we made other
plans. Based on a recommendation from a friend we went to the Salvation Army
command center at Yankee Stadium in Biloxi Mississippi. Nothing, no news media, pictures, stories or
anything could have prepared me for the destruction I saw when I arrived. The smell of rotten sewage hit my noise
driving down 150 miles north giving me a clue as to what was to come as did the
broken trees and damage seen as far north as Montgomery Alabama. Driving Down I-10 I first noticed every
billboard either down or ripped to shreds, what an eerie sight. There were mile and miles of destruction as
far as the eye could see. Picture the
entire lower 25 miles of Mississippi totally wiped out. Almost every structure
below I-10 would need to be bulldozed and started over. Most north of I-10 for
a few miles would need this too. On
waking up the first morning I had three stray dogs under my cot desperate for
any human loving they could get. The town was awash in stray animals frantic
for a new companion. Perhaps this was
the first true message of the emotional impact this hurricane had made.
From Yankee Stadium we made initial contacts and got a tour
of the destruction and needs, mostly in the town of Gulfport from a Salvation
Army Chaplin. Here we linked up with
the NAACP and were asked to feed in the underserved pour black neighborhoods. The tour gave us a better idea what we were
dealing with. The first lesson was that
people would not come out of their communities to feeding areas. They wanted to
stay in their house, or what was left of it. They were clinging on desperately to what
they had left and loosing any more, even losing the nothing they had left, was
more than they were ready to face so they stayed put at what was left of there
homes. This meant that what was really
needed was many small feeding areas, not one large one. There was no shortage of need, but we
wondered if we could work in these areas or if the cultural differences would
be a problem. We were assigned a spot in a wiped out church near a community of
2000. On the day we were going to move
on this we heard that Felipe of Kiddie Village had also left Aaron, Clovis and
the others in Louisiana feeling that there plan was to long before it would
come to fruitarian. He had set up in Waveland MS. We decided to divert there to
join as one.
Let me tell you about Waveland MS. Waveland is a small, mostly upper middle class neighborhood that
was ground zero for Katrina. The whole down was wiped out by a 30-foot wave
that took the town out completely. Almost nothing salvageable was left. Katrina
was the great equalizer for this town, making poor and rich equals in the
struggle for basic food, shelter, clothing and survival. For reasons I don’t fully understand
Waveland was almost completely ignored by larger relief groups. The only folks
doing any real work were the small, mostly church based, relief groups. There was no sign of the Salvation Army.
The only Red Cross presence was trucks picking up foods from other groups and
re-distributing it. This seemed like
the place we were needed.
We arrived in the parking lot of a Freds food store and met
a local Christian relief group from Bastrop Texas called BCOC http://www.bastropchristianoutreachcenter.org. They were down there, as they said, “to just
love on everyone as much as we can”. That sounds like Rainbow to me. We joined
forces in a common goal to serve and help as much as we could. We were two
totally different groups united by a common cause. The relationship couldn’t
have been better. We set up a common serving area but two kitchens, one of BCOC
and one Rainbow. After time Rainbows went to the BCOC kitchens and BCOC folks
came and helped in the Rainbow Kitchen.
We become one together.
Together we did our best to give the people what they
needed. We cooked, set up a “wall-less mart” where people could get basic food,
camping, clothing and other needs. We unloaded tractor-trailer after
tractor-trailer of supplies. We provided medical needs in our first aid tent
(up the road Carolina Medical from Charlotte NC set up a larger mobile field
hospital for more serious needs). But mostly we tried to give the town the love and support they
needed. One of my favorite tasks was to
sit down and eat dinner with locals each night. They usually couldn’t wait to
tell you there stories. They needed to get their stories out and begin the
healing process. I became one of many ears. I heard amazing story after story
of heroic clinging for life in the storm as 30 foot waves washed over them, of
total house destruction and of trying to find a way to start over with
nothing. I have heard these kinds of
stories before on the news, but the power of hearing so many from so many
people first hand moved me to tears. It was one of many times I cried there
being part of power and healing that was going on. It was amazing to watch the people go though the process of
grieving of lost homes, possessions, dreams and there life. When we first came
they were still in a state of stunned disbelief. Over time this changed to
sadness, frustration, anger (those were the hardest days), and then gradual
acceptance. We were there to love them though this all.
The days were long and the heat tremendous. This was the hardest I have ever worked as I
got up at 7 am to work till midnights each night with sweat pouring down me all
day in the 95-103 degree sun. Yet the
faces who came each morning and thanked us for giving them hope made it all
worth it. I head many a story from folks telling us our food was the best, or
we had the only diet varied enough to keep them out of the hospital as we were
a favorite feeding area for those with medical dietary needs such as
diabetes. Most relief centers served
instant food or re-heated already made food. Apparently we were the only
feeding center with real food made from scratch. Folks told us they came to us
for over 50 miles, had sampled all the food stations and we were the best. We
fed locals, cops, military personal, construction crews, volunteer crews, and
anyone who came. I have no idea how many meals we served per day but 6,000
meals per day is a decent guess. All
this eventually (according to FEMA) made us the largest and most liked Feeding
Center (or POD as they called them) in the Gulf Coast. We went though the back
door, just doing what we do best without any agency support, and came to the
attention of FEMA and hence support as we became known for our good work. Eventually we became a main pipeline for
supplies getting donations of any sort with ease and we grew and grew. Relations were good all around. We had our
own group of Florida cops that loved us, work with us and guarded our area for
us. Perhaps this was the first time in
Rainbow history we truly worked hand in hand with police, military and others
without fear, paranoia, or agendas, just cooperation. No attitudes on either side,
just an acknowledgement that we were working tougher to help the town. This was
also, we noted, perhaps the first time government agents openly and willingly ate
Rainbow cooked food.
So here was the birth of the New Waveland Café from members
from many Rainbow kitchens. We created a rainbow environment and the people
came, en mass. It was amazing to see
Rainbow love spread and work its magic on the unknowing. I watched cops put
down there guns to join and help. Government officials adopt and use Rainbow
Words. Rainbow love change, not only locals, but provide hope and feelings of
love and worth to volunteers who’s lives had been missing love and appreciation
for years. As many, previously non-Rainbow volunteers left many a tear was shed
at the realization of a life changing growth we gave.
We grew and grew and the gifts kept coming. First Cisco
folks, in order to test a new Wireless mesh based internet system, put up a
satellite feed and provided us a wireless repeater, VoIP phones and 3 lap top
computers. A School in North Carolina
gave us 240 high school kids as volunteers.
They mayor gave us an oven/stove out of the Waveland Civic Center and
Blossman Gas gave us propane and hooked the stove up. An oil company dropped of
a 150KW diesel generator and trucks of whatever we needed came in many times a
day. Here in this town your money is
worthless. There is nowhere to spend it.
Everything is free now. I wonder how this will affect the town in the
future as the residents learn the power of free giving. Most get it but some
refuse to take on fear that others need more. Others horde, steal, or take to
much on fear that they will never get again or not quite understanding what is
happening but most get it and freely take and give as they are able and need.
As time went on Rainbow became more the feeding area and
BCOC took on distribution of goods, unloading of trucks and helping with
infrastructure. We had a massive
operation taking the corner 1/3 of a Super Wall Mart parking lot. The rest of
the parking lot was taken by a Seventh Day Adventist group. While our cooperation with BCOC was great
the cooperation with the Adventist group was poor. Eventually the Red Cross
pulled from the Adventists too out because they could not deal with them. Then
FEMA couldn’t deal with them and the leaders pulled out leaving everything in
the hands of “Rocking Robin” a 16 year old member and cooperation started. The
issue is the Adventists worked by mowing over everyone and not working with
them. They created an environment that was hostile and unliked and hence people
didn’t use their facilities. This created more anger and resentment on their
part and the problems continued.
Eventually we became victims of our own success. The town and officials are now beginning to
take back control. We started getting visits from FEMA, Health Departments and
other groups. They want us to stay, to be the last large center. The will give
us everything we need, large tents, support, equipment, food, but we must do it
all there way. This leaves us wondering if it will still be real, if we will
destroy what we created that was good. If we have a choice? There is no doubt
that we will be needed till at least thanksgiving, but what we will be is
anyone’s guess. Transition to permanence is pending and things are changing. We
will have to see what happens.
For now know that this town needs your love and support. Come and join us if you feel the need. We are right across the street in Waveland from the water tower and waveland Police Station. The people still need your support so they can rebuild there homes and lives. They need camping gear, love, entertainment (please send in the clowns) and more. They do not need more clothing or water.
Hawker
September 22, 2005
Pictures from Waveland and other places nearby are at
http://ashevillecommunity.org/hawker/katrina/gallery.html
Silashundt's Pictures from The New Waveland Cafe are at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/new_waveland_photos
Donations for the Rainbow Relief Team are accepted at
http://tinyurl.com/cqdky