Editorial: Katrina Response—Plaudits To The Good Guys

We have not written kindly of governmental failures when it comes to Hurricane Katrina recovery. We make no apologies for that. On the other hand, thousands of volunteers, many heroic, have given time, skill and finances to make life better for victims of that Gulf Coast tragedy. We write, generally, about New Orleans, since that has been the national focus. But Katrina did not restrict her tantrum just to New Orleans. Damage was widespread, and so has been the laudable work of selfless volunteers. Area folks refer to them as “unsung heroes.”

Hopefully, according to a story by Ginger Gibson in the July 29 issue of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, those heroes will not go unsung much longer. A group based in Diamondhead, just across the border in Mississippi, is planning to construct a $1.5 million fountain at the border “in honor of the people who flocked to the region to aid in the recovery effort,” Gibson wrote.

The idea for the fountain gathered wide approval following a thank-you dinner for volunteers who assisted at Diamondhead. To one resident, Jim Seglund, the event didn’t seem to be enough. So, as Gibson wrote, “…he approached the Mississippi Legislature to get permission for something more permanent.”

This year the legislature passed House Bill 546 to further the effort. The bill, Gibson wrote, “authorizes the group to use a portion of land at the Mississippi welcome center along Interstate 10 ‘in recognition and appreciation of the thousands of volunteers who donated their time and money to assist the citizens of Mississippi in recovering from the destruction, and in the rebuilding efforts following Hurricane Katrina.’ ”

The idea grew like Topsy. Seglund, who became project director, believed widespread support would be appropriate, so he began to lobby. During a Chamber of Commerce meeting in Diamondhead, he met the president of a Natchez, Miss., web design and advertising firm. Seglund had a vision of what he wanted. Jim McBride and his Helios Design Group knew what to do with it. (McBride is now vice president of the fountain committee board.)

Seglund’s vision, according to Gibson, “was to create a statue 30 feet tall to mark the height of the storm surge, shaped by the Helios artists into a rendering of a marble and granite obelisk shaped like a wave.” The structure would be bent in the middle to “symbolize how the event was life-changing for the entire community.” The names of all communities across the Gulf Coast affected by Katrina will appear upon it.

Water will flow through the fountain and cascade down a center channel, Gibson explained. To approach the fountain, visitors will have to walk along a path strewn with hurricane debris. A four-foot brick wall around the fountain will contain bronze plaques bearing the names of volunteer groups and donors.

Once the fountain was designed, the next project stage (construction planning) led back to a Katrina victim, Pete Fritzsching, whose Diamondhead home was totally destroyed by Katrina. Fritzsching, who now lives in a new home across town, has an engineering background. So he approached Wink Engineering Inc., a Baton Rouge-based company with offices in New Orleans, to begin planning construction, the Times-Picayune reported. Using the Helios design, Wink developed the $1.5 million proposal.

Finally, there’s the issue of raising the money to build the fountain. Once the money is raised, the engineering firm will be hired to oversee the construction and subcontractors needed to build it. To date, the project committee has not received money from any government agency at any level. Seglund told Gibson, “It is hoped that the majority of the costs can be covered by donations from people who benefited from the aid of volunteers across the state.”

Since the fundraising effort kicked in, support has begun to pour in, Seglund said. A nursery has offered to provide free landscaping. Selling bricks to be used to construct the wall around the fountain will cover some costs. The group is also seeking contributions from anyone so inclined to give. Those interested can visit the group’s web site, www. Katrinafountain.org, or send donations to: Katrina Volunteer Fountain, Gulf Coast Community Foundation, P.O. Box 2984, Gulfport, MS 39505-2984. Additional information is also available by calling (228) 255-3451.

Katrina, the most costly and one of the deadliest hurricanes in U.S. history, formed in the Bahamas on August 23, 2005. Initially it was classified as a Category 5 storm but subsequently was reduced to Category 3. The storm surge, reports in 2007 revealed, remained Category 5. Winds reached a peak of 175 mph. The storm and subsequent flooding caused the death of 1,836 people. Criticism of the Federal Emergency Management Agency sparked a congressional investigation and the resignation of the agency’s director.

A great number of individual and nongovernmental organizations have stepped forward since August 2005 to help hurricane victims. Congress can still do a lot more to mitigate the poor performance of FEMA, if it will only do it. In the meantime, we are faced with what seems to us to be a fundraising effort for a miniscule amount of money—$1.5 million. Umpteen million television viewers sat glued to their sets as chapters of the Katrina story unfolded. We can only hope they will step forward to help financially in the construction of the fountain to honor volunteers.

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