Victims adjust to new lifestyles on the west coast
By Betsy Avelar Staff Writer
Gilroy – His friends died that day, and as he and his wife looked out the door at the monstrous hurricane, a 14-foot piece of privacy fence slammed into their door, barely missing them. They weren’t sure if they would live through the nightmare to tell the story of their survival, but they did.
One year later, Katrina survivors Wes Jackson and Jade Reedus are in the San Jose Valley Medical Hospital; and after 16 hours of labor, Reedus delivered a 6-pound, 12-ounce baby girl early Friday morning. Their first daughter Natalie, almost 2-years-old now, was with them in Mississippi when hurricane Katrina struck in August of last year. The category five hurricane that struck the Gulf Coast left more than 1,200 dead in the region and 65,000 homes destroyed.
“Our house got destroyed, and we were homeless for about four and a half months, until we finally managed to get out here,” said Jackson, who now lives in Morgan Hill with his family.
Hurricane Katrina caused an estimated $40 billion in damage, but the psychological cost to the victims cannot be estimated. Many were left homeless and fled to live with relatives throughout the country or started over alone. And while the hurricane did not dampen the spirit of the Jackson family, it completely destroyed their lifestyle.
“Now I’m back on the bottom again,” said 23-year-old Jackson.
In Mississippi, Jackson was lead cook at a Cajun restaurant, had a home, and he wasn’t “out of his element.” Here he remains jobless, angry and frustrated, but he wants to put it behind him and get on with his life.
“Everybody is making a big deal about the hurricane, and all the people (who were involved) are just trying to forget it,” said the Mississippi survivor.
Unlike Jackson and Reedus, hurricane victim Alton Chalk of New Orleans, lives alone in Gilroy. He fled his home before the hurricane struck and destroyed his home. After three weeks of living in a shelter, Chalk came to Gilroy Sept., 20, 2005. Gilroy is smaller, less humid and he is thousands of miles from his two sisters. The 52-year-old spends his time volunteering for Wheeler Manor and fosters friendships through his church group because it reminds him of his home in New Orleans.
“Volunteer work was always part of my life, so to get comfortable of being like I was at home, I just started doing volunteer work here,” said Chalk, wearing a dark blue T-shirt that he received for volunteering at the Gilroy Garlic festival.
Cheryl Huguenor, Program Director of Live Oak Adult Day Services, spoke of the time he talked about his experience at the center.
“He (was) our guest speaker and just told us about his amazing survival stories; making it through the horrible hurricane. (We didn’t realize) how horrible it would be trying to get away. He drove until he ran out of gas,” said Huguenor. “It was very generous of him to talk about his experience. It had to (be) really hard to sit in a room full of strangers and talk about something so traumatic. We’re very honored that he shared his experience with us.”
Chalk does not have a job as he is disabled, but he will continue to influence those in the community around them.
“I’m doing the things that I (did) when I moved here,” Chalk said in his normal monotone voice. He also took courses at Gavilan, and in the future hopes to obtain a real estate license. “Next week I’ll start going to Gavilan,” he said, his tone a bit more upbeat.
Both Chalk and the Jackson family received help from the South County Housing that provided an apartment for them. South County Housing Corporation (SCH) is a non-profit developer of affordable housing in California’s Silicon Valley and Central Coast Regions.
Although these families are safe in Gilroy and Morgan Hill, “there are still a lot of people who need help,” said Jackson.
