STB Magazine Summer 2025

SUMMER 2025 VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2

Pgs. 11–20

KATRINA'S 20TH ANNIVERSARY (2nd of 4-part series)

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Summer Issue 2025

CATcH OUR CuLtURE i n H i s to r i c S t. B e r n a r d Pa r i s h

Celebrate our rich history while you explore Spanish St. Bernard at Los Isleños Museum Complex and historic village during our Isleños Festival. Connect with our coastal communities in Eastern St. Bernard, and experience world class fishing. For a natural encounter, the St. Bernard State Park is an ideal spot for camping and hiking located along the Mississippi River. Take a road trip down the San Bernardo Scenic By-way, and enjoy local restaurants, shopping and culture.

Live like a local and Stay in St. Bernard Parish.

U p c o m i n g Ev e n ts JUNE

AUGUST

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JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION

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DELACROIX ISLAND BLESSING OF THE FLEET

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ST. BERNARD SEAFOOD MARKET

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HURRICANE KATRINA COMMEMORATION

J U LY

SEPTEMBER

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ST. BERNARD SALUTES AMERICA & LIBERTY BELL RINGING

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ST. BERNARD SEAFOOD MARKET

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HOPEDALE, SHELLBEACH, YSCLOSKEY BLESSING OF THE FLEET

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ST. BERNARD SEAFOOD MARKET

Only 5 miles from the Histor oriic French Quarter V i s i t S t B e r n a r d . c o m | ( 5 0 4 ) 2 7 8 .4 2 4 2

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What’s Inside

16 8 19

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Summer Issue 2025

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Publisher’s Pen: Thanks "Junior"

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Duplessis Tells Katrina Story

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Parish Officials Recall Katrina

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The Aftermath: Starting Over

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LA National Guard Search & Rescue

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Teen Grabs Boat To Reach Stranded

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Before & After Storm: Timeline of 2 Residents Baptist Health Mobile Units Ask A Doctor: Kids' Sunscreen Rain Garden for Soggy Spots Faces of the Parish

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Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Charles D. Jackson JPR (Jackson Public Relations) Enterprises, LLC Office - 1601 Ohio St., Chalmette, LA 70043 Email - stbernardmagazine@yahoo.com Website - stbernardmagazine.com Phone - (504) 609-7509

From left to right, Jessica Lima, Mariska Oggs, Dr. Lauren Griffin, Krystina Dominique

Copy Editor Faith Dawson Art Director Brionna Palmer

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Summer Issue 2025

AD Designers Herbie Fisher Sharon Hueschen Keith Hogan

Maeci Bowlin Rhett Breerwood Lenor Duplessis Charles Jackson Anthony Nguyen, M.D. Rose Marie Sand Anna Timmerman

Circulation

Photographers

Farrah Ross Appleman Ronda DeForest Charles Jackson Tony Peralta Anna Timmerman

Accounting

D.W. Huff Consulting

Metro DistributionDanny Sunseri

Vol. 7, Issue 2 - Summer 2025 The cover photo is from FEMA's public archives.

St. Bernard Magazine is wholly-owned by Charles D. Jackson, president of JPR Enterprises, LLC, Chalmette, LA; Printed by Fox Press, Hammond, LA. 5K-10K Free Copies Distributed Quarterly by St. Bernard Magazine and Metro Distribution (Rouses Markets) to grocery stores, restaurants and businesses in St. Bernard, New Orleans, Metairie, Slidell, Mandeville, Covington, Ponchatoula and Hammond.

See locations: stbernardmagazine.com/distribution Ad Deadlines: Spring Issue (Jan. 15), Summer (March 15), Fall (June 15), Winter (Sept. 15).

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Publisher's Pen by

by Charles Charles D. D. Jackson Jackson

Katrina’s 20th Anniversary

Remembering “Junior” This summer issue, “When Katrina Hit” (Aug. 29, 2005), is the second installment of St. Bernard Magazine’s four-part series marking the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. You’ll read stories about first responders, longtime residents and public officials reflecting on what happened before, during and after Katrina. No longer here to share his story is Henry J. “Junior” Rodriguez, parish president from 2003 to 2007.

He died in May 2018.

"Junior" – as St. Bernard residents knew him – was a colorful character, a lifelong community activist who served on the parish’s governing authority for 32 consecutive years, making him one of the longest-serving elected officials in local history.

Henry J. “Junior” Rodriguez Parish president (1935-2018) during Katrina, he became notorious for his candid, unapologetic, sometimes profanity-laden concerns and justified complaints presented in person to President George W. Bush, FEMA leadership and other public officials whom he deemed responsible for the slow, inept federal response to the plight of St. Bernard post-Katrina.

National and international media latched on to "Junior" Rodriguez's explosive rhetoric, and it was that focused media attention that pressured federal authorities into expediting resources to remedy the catastrophic devastation throughout the community, opening the doors for other local leadership to fulfill the will of the people to rebuild St. Bernard Parish.

“Junior” was a generous friend to many and, when

aroused, a lethal foe. No matter how his role in the Katrina epoch was perceived, his presence became pivotal in this community's campaign to rebuild and renew St. Bernard Parish.

According to Parish Historian Bill Hyland, “Junior” was related to many of St. Bernard Parish’s longserving elected officials: Jack Rowley, sheriff and district attorney for a combined 52 years (19622014); Albert Estopinal, local and state offices for 47 years (1872-1919); Louis A. Ducros, M.D., coroner for 42 years (1902 until death); Esteve E. "E.E." Nunez, sheriff for 30 years (1879-1909); and Jack Stephens, sheriff for 28 years (1984-2012).

What a familial legacy of service!

Next: Part 3, Fall 2025 – Post-Katrina

The magazine highlights the rich history, people, progress, traditions, culture, resilience, diversity, civics, small business, schools, organizers, and the extraordinarily welcoming community atmosphere of St. Bernard Parish. This mixture makes ‘Da Parish “The Most Unique County (Parish) in the Country.”

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My Katrina Story

by Lenor Duplessis

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n the day of the hurricane, we watched TV in Texas (where we evacuated), but didn’t really know what was going on because of limited coverage. After the storm passed, I called the receptionist at St. Bernard Parish Government building, where I had worked in parish administration since high school. While on the phone, she became hysterical and said the water was rising and they had moved to the building’s second floor. About a week later, co-workers told me that my Violet neighborhood had sustained 17 feet of water and was still underwater.

We weren’t allowed in the parish to see our home until a month after the hurricane. My husband, Victor, and I drove to the parish and couldn’t believe what we were seeing. The parish looked like a deserted land; it smelled rotten and there was no sign of life. The inside of our home, blanketed with 2 feet of mud and moss, was as bad as the outside.

The ceilings had fallen and there was a car leaning on the house. Overwhelmed, we drove back to

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Texas. My husband and brother later drove back, gutted our home and sprayed it with chemicals.

After a few months, my husband, with the supervision of a local contractor, began the process of rebuilding.

In April 2006, we were the first in our Oak Ridge neighborhood to move back home. It was exciting and scary because there were no street lights.

We were determined to survive and make life as normal as possible for our two sons.

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Summer Issue 2025

Katrina's 20th Anniversary When It Hit

Remembering

"Ground Zero" - 2nd of 4-Part Series -

The Stories of Sheriff, Councilman, Coroner, Fire Chief & Schools Superintendent Before The Storm “That Friday night was a big shock seeing this hurricane in the Gulf and it was coming our way,” said Guy McInnis, a Chalmette High School teacher then, later council member and two-term parish president. “As Saturday progressed, people figured they probably needed to get out; this is a big storm.”

The government emergency management team of parish officials, fire chief, sheriff, coroner and school superintendent had been executing evacuations, securing shelter, staging equipment, and organizing staff and volunteers.

Photo provided by St. Bernard Fire Department Firefighters and volunteers operate search and rescue in boats stationed at the St. Bernard Parish Government Complex on Judge Perez Drive.

O

By Charles D. Jackson

n Monday, Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina landed on the Louisiana coast, causing massive flooding in St. Bernard Parish. The devastation was fueled two-fold: a levee breach in the Lower 9th Ward and storm surge from the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet. The entire parish was engulfed into a swamp, resulting in significant property damage and loss of life. Of the 26,000 structures, fewer than a dozen did not flood.

(For the 15th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina in 2020, St. Bernard Parish Government’s Rachel Sigur, manager government access department, produced a video of parish officials discussing the storm. The following sequence is extracted from that video.)

School buses were provided for residents. “We evacuated more people than any parish in the history of the state of Louisiana,’’ said lifelong resident Joey DiFatta, council chairman at the time. “We had 68,000 people living here.

After the storm, we calculated only about 8,000 who stayed.

So that means 60,000 people Joey DiFatta evacuated via personal or group transportation.”

Dr. Bryan Bertucci, longtime parish coroner, said, “The biggest thing before the storm was trying to get the people of St. Rita (nursing home) on the phone. I finally reached St. Rita, and said, ‘Mabel, we have buses.

How many do you need? She Dr. Bryan Bertucci said, ‘I met with most of the families and we decided to stay. We’ve got pumps, we’ve got some nurses and we’re going to stay.’ ‘’

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‘You’re going to have a 30-foot wall of water to hit your parish, and you’re going to flood levee to levee. There’s not going to be a structure spared. You’re going to have a significant loss of life. God bless you. Good luck.’

- Sheriff Jack Stephens, quoting NWS official Sheriff Jack Stephens

Sunday Warning Longtime Sheriff Jack Stephens received a call about 8:30 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 28, from an official with the National Weather Service office in Miami.

“He said, ‘Sheriff, sorry I have to make this call, but I couldn’t sleep last night. I just wanted to let you know that you’re going to have a 30-foot wall of water to hit your parish, and you’re going to flood levee to levee. There’s not going to be a structure spared. You’re going to have a significant loss of life. God bless you. Good luck,’ and he hung the phone up. My wife said, ‘Who was that?’ I said it was the guy who in essence said, ‘Take the pictures off the walls, and pack the insurance papers cause this is the last time you’re going to see this place.’ ”

in the community at any time of emergency.

“Chalmette High hosted about 250 people,” Voitier said. “We also had to accommodate and help those people needing medical attention – and we’re just school people.

We had people on Doris Voitier ventilators, and many needed intensive medical care. And we did everything we could to take in and help everyone in need, because that’s what school people do. As the storm intensified Sunday evening, we looked across the street at Lacoste Elementary and saw the roof torn off. There were shattered windows in our building. You could feel the intensity. We actually thought early into Monday morning that we had gotten through the worst of it. We had weathered that part of the storm. We felt pretty good.”

I told our firefighters, look, we’re in the middle of the biggest natural Photo provided by Tony Fernandez

disaster in the history of this country, and people are

Sheriff Jack Stephens (left), Pete Taffaro (standing) and other personnel make plans with National Guard officers from Jackson Barracks in a third floor room of the courthouse along with Chief Deputy Tony Fernandez (right next to guardsmen) and Capt. Jimmy Pohlmann (current sheriff) before the storm hit.

right now. You’ve got

At noon Sunday, Superintendent Doris Voitier and school administrators opened Chalmette High School as one of two (along with St. Bernard High) shelters of last resort. The school system, historically, has been the caretaker for the people

– Longtime Fire Chief Thomas Stone

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Summer Issue 2025

depending upon you to be heroes – and they were.

Monday Madness (Water from a levee breach in the Lower Ninth Ward and a storm surge from the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet inundated the entire parish.)

“I guess around 7:30 on Monday morning, the chaos started,” said Sheriff Stephens, whose team hunkered down Saturday night at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters behind the courthouse on St. Bernard Highway. “The wind was blowing 50-60 mph as water rushed into the courthouse like Niagara Falls.’’ Rising 6 feet to the third step of the staircase, the water flooded the clerk’s first-floor office, destroying records.

Sheriff’s Capt. Errol Shulz said the courthouse was built at the same level as the Mississippi River levee – 18 feet above sea level. “We’ve always said if water ever rises above the level of the levee, every home in this parish would be flooded to the roof.’’

Longtime Fire Chief Thomas Stone, stationed at the Government Complex on Judge Perez Drive, said: “Seeing the whitecaps coming down from Arabi, I thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be bad.’

We had school buses in the parking lot, military equipment, and vans, and the next thing you know you couldn’t see the tops of them. The water had covered them completely.

“I told our firefighters, look, we’re in the middle of the biggest natural disaster in the history of this country - and people are depending upon you right now. You’ve got to be heroes – and they were.

“I was very proud of the members of the department for the many rescues they performed,” Stone said. “They would find boats at houses and get them running, maybe taking fuel from one boat, a battery from another to get a third boat working. They use professionalism, ingenuity and fortitude in saving lives.”

School Superintendent Voitier: “I remember looking out the window at Chalmette High School, looking down Judge Perez and seeing a wall of water just coming with fierce intensity. So we had to very quickly take 250 people – many wheelchairbound – upstairs as the water just surged in. We were not able to move our provisions upstairs. The water broke down the walls on the first floor, the coolers, and upended our cafeteria.”

‘Worst-Case Scenario’ Sheriff Stephens: “Whatever plan it was did not anticipate an event the size of Katrina. As far as I’m concerned, it was the worst-case scenario for this parish.”

Council Chairman DiFatta: “Where were all the different people coming to help us? And we realized we were ground zero. Nobody could come in here and help us. We were kind of on our own to take care of ourselves.”

Dr. Bertucci: “That night, I’m sleeping on the roof (of the hospital), no pillow, lying on gravel. As I was looking out, Village Square was on fire. And the stars were beautiful. Then someone told me that 35 people at St. Rita had died. Many were my patients.

It was a very difficult night.”

The nurses were tremendous.

People coming in boats to the second floor of the hospital. The hallways were packed. At the gym, people were dropping off people in boats. One man’s mother died – she drowned – and her body was in the boat. But he just kept going back to get his neighbors.

– Dr. Bryan Bertucci

Photo courtesy of St. Bernard Parish Schools Principal Wayne Warner wades through chest-deep water inside Chalmette High School.

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Dr. Bertucci: “The nurses were tremendous. People coming in boats to the second floor of the hospital. The hallways were packed. At the gym, people were dropping off people in boats. One man’s mother died – she drowned – and her body was in the boat. But he just kept going back to get neighbors.”

Photo provided by Tony Cuccia of Smitty’s Tire Smitty’s Tire on East Judge Perez in Violet got up to 12 feet of water. A tornado ripped a portion of the roof prior to a wall of water rushing down Judge Perez from the bayou.

‘Calm’ Teamwork Amid Crisis The fire department stationed boats at the government complex. “Along with the citizens and the sheriff’s department, it was amazing teamwork,” Chief Stone said. “There were hundreds of people stuck on rooftops and in attics. The fire department swung into action. Luckily, we live in a coastal community and many were familiar with operating boats under very1difficult Shoemaker_hlfpg_6-24.pdf 4/23/24 situations.”

6:18 PM

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Others rescued were brought to the second floor of the courthouse. When the time was ready, they were moved to a ferry at the St. Bernard Port for transport across the river.

“If you are a student of human nature, Katrina was a Ph.D,” Sheriff Stephens said. “There was no one who I expected to perform who didn't do a good job. The surprise was the people you didn’t expect.

Those were heroes, that were extraordinaire. It was an incredible scene.”

Supt. Voitier: “‘When you are in those crisis situations, and you’re working as a team, leadership is there. When you remain calm and show that you know what you’re doing, the best of the team around you comes out. Then you can kind of breathe a little bit, after that crisis is over. That’s when you see what people are truly made of.”

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Summer Issue 2025

Dr. Lesichia Jarrell 15 Years Experience

Aftermath: ‘A War Zone’ Guy McInnis: “Whatever day that was when they opened the parish up, we came in. It was like a war zone. Everything was so grey; total destruction everywhere. There was absolutely no life, no birds, no mosquitoes – although we’re in August and September. It was the weirdest thing. You didn’t see anything running around.’’

DiFatta: “We saw different things. We saw deer on top of roofs, alligators on roofs. You had cars that floated up on roofs, slab houses that floated away from where they were to the middle of the street. It was a cement-slab house that popped up from the ground and floated.”

were free standing on a little bit of a slab near the front of the steps. She said her husband died a few years ago, and her three kids live out of state. She said the most painful thing is ‘there’s no proof that I ever existed. All the family pictures, marriage licenses, and birth certificates, and high school diplomas – all the things that were important to me, that proved I was here are gone.’

She said literally, ‘There is no evidence that I ever did anything; that I ever survived. It’s all erased.

Everything is gone.’ It was so depressing because, you know what? She was so right.”

A memorial in Shell Beach lists the names of 163 people who perished in the storm, and an annual ceremony is held to honor the victims.

Dr. Bertucci: “In cleaning the mud up, I killed about four moccasins. We had about 30 snakes in our house. The mud in the house was about a foot deep. When you stepped into it, it had a sulphur smell, and you couldn’t smell anything – you never could forget it. ” Sheriff Stephens: “I was riding through Arabi and ran into this elderly lady whose family I knew.

The only thing left was concrete steps going up to her house. The house was gone; it's just a slab.

And there were three little statues of Mary that

Photo by Tony Peralta

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Starting from Nothing "We Will Recover"

Photos by Ronda DeForest

Riding around the parish a month after Katrina, resident Ronda DeForest took pictures of the devastation in neighborhoods.

(Quotes from St. Bernard Parish Government video produced by Rachel Sigur in 2020, featuring elected and appointed officials for a Hurricane Katrina 15th anniversary documentary.)

Two-Term Parish President Guy McInnis, a teachercoach at Chalmette High when Katrina hit, said: “People started popping up in campers along the highway. People started little by little moving all the debris from their homes. The mounds of debris and trucks coming by and picking them up were overwhelming. I helped a little bit with some people. It was kind of weird, sort of strange seeing people’s stuff – clothes, pictures – just being picked up and put in the trucks. There’s something wrong about that. You didn’t feel like you were cleaning anything up; it didn’t feel well. It was sad.”

That brought to me the scenario of two certain things in life: death and taxes. And now I add change. God gives us all of these things as temporary gifts in our lives, and if we don’t appreciate them, he takes them back.

In Katrina’s case, sometimes he takes them all back in one day.

– Dr. Bryan Bertucci

Coroner Dr. Bryan J. Bertucci: “When someone asks me what was it like, it’s like when you go out to start your lawnmower and it doesn’t start. Or when somebody steals your car. And your house burned down, business went bankrupt, all your friends died or moved away on the same day. Not one aspect of your life is left intact.”

Former Council Chairman Joey DiFatta: “It was almost impossible to believe that we could recover.

We only found five or six places throughout the parish that were not inundated with water.

Everything was devastated. So with that in mind, council members, parish officials, sheriff, fire chief, all of those working here in the parish, looking at each other, and saying how do we recover? At that point we said, ‘We will recover.’ ”

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Summer Issue 2025

Photo provided by St. Bernard School District

Classroom trailers housed St. Bernard Unified Schools after Katrina.

BayouUrgentCare_June2025.pdf

Superintendent of Schools Doris Voitier: "We knew that the survival of this community was dependent upon us opening our schools. Once the floodwaters were gone, it was time to get the kids back. They told us it couldn't be done, but in a matter of weeks we put a school together in the parking lot of the football field at Chalmette High. We procured classroom trailers from North Carolina, Georgia, had them shipped down and put together in the parking lot and exactly 11 weeks after the storm, we were the first school district to open in the metro area. The first day of the Unified School we had 334 kids. Now we have just under 8,000 students in elementary, middle and high school. If we had waited, I don't know what we would have opened today.”

Fire Chief Thomas Stone: “The first restaurant or store to open was life therapy. I remember seeing the first FEMA trailers delivered to people’s front yards and that was therapy.”

DiFatta: “I think the first fast-food restaurant, although it isn’t a fast-food restaurant, was Today’s Ketch. And when they opened, we couldn’t believe we had real food for a change instead of MRIs or whatever they call them. But when you’re hungry, they are better than nothing. I thank Jeff and Terri Pohlmann. They came back quickly, cleaned up their place, and started serving food and the lines were down the street because everybody wanted to eat something good.’’

Dr. Bertucci: “The goal was to rebuild medicine. I would not wear my white coat until medicine was normal again in St. Bernard Parish. The day the hospital opened was when the archbishop placed the white coat on me. That was a special moment. I helped recruit other doctors.”

DiFatta: “There is no place on Earth that has more fortitude than the people in St. Bernard Parish.

Everybody wanted to come back. We became the fastest-growing community for about three or four years by folks determined to come back home.

When you start at zero and get to where we are today, around 50,000, you have to have a lot of self determination and a lot of want. Our people wanted to come home.”

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"Life Therapy" - Coming Home

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Chief Stone: “They said if the schools open and if we have a hospital again, people would come back.

‘And they did. That’s been great.”

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Although Flooded, Too, National Guard Responds

E

By Rhett Breerwood, Historian Louisiana Army National Guard

very available Louisiana National Guard Soldier and Airman was activated by Aug. 29 – about 6,000 men and women. When Jackson Barracks flooded, about 400 guard personnel were on the post, which neighbors St. Bernard Parish at the Orleans Parish line in the Lower 9th Ward.

Once wind conditions allowed, Guardsmen from the barracks took boats into the Lower 9th Ward and St. Bernard Parish to perform search and rescue. Due to the chaotic nature of those first few days, there were no hard numbers of boat rescues, but according to personal accounts, several hundred people were helped. By mid-September, nearly 60,000 people had been rescued.

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Summer Issue 2025

after their initial rescue, and moved 127 tons of cargo and 70 tons of rations and water.

Support from the nationwide state-to-state, mutual-aid partnership called Emergency Management Assistance Compact arrived en masse by the end of the first week.

Photo provided by Louisiana

By Monday, Sept. 5, almost Army National Guard 20,000 National Guard personnel were active in A guardsman helps a Louisiana with the bulk toddler who was holed in the New Orleans metro up with his family in the area. By mid-September, attic. the number of personnel in Louisiana increased to 30,000 – from 49 states, three U.S. territories and Washington, D.C.

Canadians Show Up An elite search-and-rescue team from Canada was the first non-local group to arrive in St. Bernard Parish after Katrina, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

“At first, the only rescuers on hand were the residents and officials of St. Bernard Parish,” the newspaper reported Sept.

15, 2005. “Two days after Katrina hit, the specialized teams of Vancouver (Canada) Urban Search and Rescue showed up to help, and a sprinkling of officials from neighboring parishes paid visits.”

Canada was one of the main countries that provided the most aid and relief, including ships, supplies, volunteers, disaster-management teams and other resources. After returning home, some St. Bernard Parish residents displayed Canadian flags on their homes and lawns to express their gratitude to the North American neighbors.

Rocky&Carlos_qtrpg_6_25.pdf

Rescue and Relocation

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Thanks

‘Just Someone Trying To Help’

EVERYONE for Supporting

– James Berndt

T

By Charles D. Jackson

he Saturday before Katrina, 18-year-old James Berndt came from Houma to Chalmette to ride out the storm with his two younger sisters and mother, a nurse working the weekend shift at Chalmette Medical Center. He ended up serving as a first responder.

Berndt said his family, staying at the hospital, woke up Monday morning watching water rise as high as 15 feet, and saw a bus floating past the building.

“My survival mode kicked in,’’ he said.

He and a 17-year-old friend commandeered a boat that was docked near the hospital to rescue people trapped in their homes. “We kicked in windows, did everything we could,” Berndt said. “I had to protect my family and help anybody who needed rescuing.”

Berndt, now 38 and an employee at a local refinery, said his family was among 100 people (patients, staff and their families) camped on the hospital’s roof for four days. “The first three days we ate two pieces of turkey and banana pudding. As the water went down, the National Guard came to check on us. We started lowering patients down by bed sheets.

“The fourth day, the National Guard landed a helicopter on the roof,” he said. “They loaded us onto the helicopter and took us to the airport.

Delta brought in planes that flew us to Atlanta, and the Holiday Inn transferred us in vans to the hotel.

Chick-Fil-A and Coke were there and helped us tremendously.

“Delta said they would fly us anywhere we wanted to go,” Berndt said. “The next day, we flew to Houston, Texas, and my grandpa picked us up and brought us to his home in Houma, where we stayed for months.

Berndt doesn’t take any special credit for his actions. “I tell my friends and anyone who asks about it that I don’t consider myself a hero, just someone trying to help.”

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Katrina's 20th Anniversary

A Timeline To Loss

2 Residents Recall Days Before, After Storm

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By Rose Marie Sand

veryone who experienced Katrina has a personal story of the event that threw their lives into a tailspin, and caused St. Bernard Parish residents to measure time in terms of Pre-K and Post-K. Longtime residents Linda Schneider and Ronda DeForest, who evacuated with family members, recall their days leading up to Katrina, learning of the destruction, and resettling afterward.

Thursday, Aug. 25, 2005

Hurricane Katrina hits the southeast coast of Florida (near Hallandale) as a Category 1 with winds at 80 mph. Florida Gov. Jeb Bush declares a State of Emergency.

Linda Schneider: We were looking forward to a fun weekend, without a worry in the world. Even with a Cat 1 storm hitting Florida, we were not letting it spoil our son, William’s, opening night in Chalmette in a play called “Sylvia” and a birthday party at the House of Blues in New Orleans.

Ronda DeForest: At this point I am aware of the storm but it is not a big deal at all for me – Cat 1 should just dissipate over land, right? Some rain, maybe? We had a bunch of cakes going out that weekend and we're gearing up for the dinner show at the café.

Friday, Aug. 26 Doyle & Ronda DeForest Katrina enters the Gulf of Mexico.

Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco declares a State of Emergency. The White House deploys National Guard troops to the Gulf Coast. At 10:30 a.m., Katrina intensifies to a Category 2.

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Schneider: “Sylvia” was a smash! Katrina increased to a Cat 2 storm, but with the excitement of the play and party, it was the last thing I was concerned about. It was only a “2.”

DeForest: Friday is when this storm went on to my radar (sorry, bad choice of words!). I know it sounds cliché, but I knew something wasn’t right.

My kids were little and we had commitments at the restaurant so we were tuned in to WWL all day, just keeping updated. We postponed a dinner show, and began freezing food. I called my mom that afternoon only to find out that she had friends spending the weekend with her at our camp on Lake Catherine and none of them even knew that this storm may be coming our way. I got a little snippy with her and told her to turn on the news!

Saturday, Aug. 27

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin starts a voluntary evacuation of New Orleans. St. Bernard Parish Emergency Management Team encourages evacuations, providing school buses.

Schneider: Hubby, Lou, still wasn’t ready to evacuate. After evacuating several times earlier this hurricane season, Lou wanted to track it a little

Today, Linda Schneider is surrounded by her family after bouncing back from Katrina.

longer. I still felt the need to stay up all night and pack my pictures and my son’s mementoes.

DeForest: My husband, Doyle, wanted to stay because we had to board up the café and deal with all those things, but I was so worried. I called my father-in-law in North Louisiana to see if we could fly the kids to him if need be. I still can’t believe I thought about putting my 7- and 8-year-old kids on a plane unattended just to get them out. Finally, the decision was made – along with my mother (who cared for her mother, father, special needs sister and an elderly aunt) and my sister and her family – to leave early Sunday morning and head to Humble, TX.

Sunday, Aug. 28, 7 a.m.

Katrina becomes a Category 5 storm in the Gulf with winds at about 160 mph. By 9:30 a.m., the storm is heading for the New Orleans-Biloxi, Mississippi, shoreline.

Schneider: Lou told me to pack up all I can fit in our cars. Soon, St. Bernard Sheriff officers knocked on our door and told us to please go. All of Carolyn Park was gone, and they were expecting high water. Lou had already experienced Hurricane Betsy’s flood in his childhood home and was not eager to experience it again. So, off we went to my niece’s house in Geismar, LA, with cars packed with a dog, a bird, two cats, two nights of clothes, and as many pictures, jewelry and memories I could cram in the vehicles. A trip that normally took 90 minutes turned into five hours to Geismar on the front of the storm, with rain, wind, stress and sadness all the way. Thirteen family members rode the storm out playing games and having family fun.

DeForest: We got up early and videoed the house for insurance purposes, and told the kids to grab two things they wanted to take with them. We moved important things to the tops of closets and gathered up as many pictures and important docs that we could find and loaded them in the back of our van. We got the dog and two cats loaded up, locked the Honda Civic under the carport and locked up the house. We met up with the family and left in a caravan, only to be met with horrendous traffic. My mother’s fiancé, Al, was on the sheriff’s force, so he stayed behind and promised to update us.

9 a.m., as the storm’s high winds subsided, a levee breach at the Industrial Canal in the Lower 9th Ward sent water rushing into St. Bernard Parish. Meanwhile, water from overtopped levees in the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet began swamping other sections.

People were trapped on rooftops and in attics. Many homes and businesses had up to 14-20 feet of water.

Schneider: It was the hardest day of my life, waking up to hear reports of water gushing into Arabi from the breached levee in the Lower Nine – just like Betsy. Today, and the next few days, news kept getting worse about our home and surrounding parishes.

DeForest: We were all up all night trying to get any word from the news. It seemed we saw lots of Mississippi that night. While I’m on the phone with a vet for boarding in the area, my brother-in-law walked into the room and said Al called; he was in his house when the water came in. My brother-inlaw then said, “It’s all gone.” I remember repeating, “What do you mean, It’s all gone?” I just sat there, unable to speak. We watched TV all day and never heard anything about St. Bernard, but we saw enough footage of the Lower Nine to understand what we were facing (I mean KIND OF, but nothing prepares you for it).

Tuesday, Aug. 30 Schneider: I worry if all friends and family are safe, and find out there’s water in my house up to 4 feet in the attic.

DeForest: This day was all just a blur. I think we watched TV but got overwhelmed. I do remember taking the kids to some kind of aeronautics museum so they could just run around for a while and I remember getting in free because we had our Louisiana drivers’ licenses.

Monday, Aug. 29, 6:10 a.m.

Katrina makes landfall as a Category 3 on the Gulf Coast, with strongest winds around 125 mph in the Biloxi-Gulfport region. Around

After Katrina, Doyle DeForest inspects his property and finds a metal object logged into plywood covering a window.

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Resettling After Katrina Schneider: New chapters in my family’s life. We moved to McPherson, Kansas, where my son’s college gave us a furnished house on campus to live in and a campus cafeteria meal card – we could eat anytime. Free tuition for my youngest son to go to college with his brother because his college in New Orleans, Loyola, was closed. How blessed and thankful we are for the city of McPherson to take us in and welcome us as their own. On Jan. 8, 2006, we moved to New Orleans so Will could get back to Loyola, and to wait to decide if we’re moving back to St. Bernard. We spent most of our time cleaning the house out, and wanting to return to ‘Da Parish.’

On Friday, Sept. 28, 2007, we moved back to St. Bernard – on higher land. Finally, I feel at home with all of my family back home with me.

Rose Marie DiGiovanni Sand, who now lives in Slidell, has written for several publications on the South Shore and North Shore. Proud of her St. Bernard roots, she was a member of the first graduating class of the all-girls Andrew Jackson High School in Chalmette.

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DeForest: Settling into an unknown situation was difficult at best. Do we get jobs? Enroll kids in school? Fight or flight took over and there was nowhere to take flight. So we fought. Fought with FEMA. Fought with the Red Cross. Fought with insurance adjusters. Fought to locate family and friends. Fought to keep in touch with all the people we love, with shoddy cell service and texting nowhere near what we have today. Fought to make

a life in a place where we were “the refugees.”

Always clinging to the hope that, one day, we could make it home; whatever that meant. This made for a difficult September, but was ultimately the catalyst for our decision to procure a trailer at any cost and get home as soon as we possibly could. Thankful for family in North Louisiana and the generosity of strangers. Hard to explain to people there that God was not trying to wash away sin when man-made levees failed and flooded our homes. The most well-intentioned people sometimes get it wrong.

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Where Storm Hit Hardest, Healing Took Root Baptist Community Now Drives Dental, Behavioral Health (Sponsored Content)

By Maeci Bowlin

On Aug. 29, 2005, just below the Industrial Canal on St. Claude Avenue in the Lower 9th Ward, the earth gave way, and the Mighty Mississippi surged in. Water poured into New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish with terrifying force, leaving behind devastation, death, and a city and its neighboring parish drowning in despair. Amid the record-breaking 15 feet of floodwaters that caused historic wreckage, something else began to take root: A deeper current of resilience, hope and community.

In the very neighborhood where Hurricane Katrina hit hardest, healing emerged in a tangible, enduring way.

Baptist Community Health Services (BCHS) arrived with a mission: to care for every person, regardless of income, insurance, language or background. That mission became a movement: a multi-site, Community Health Center anchored in the heart of the Lower 9th Ward, with a growing branch in Chalmette.

24 Summer Issue 2025

For more than a decade, BCHS has served Greater New Orleans, delivering high-quality, holistic healthcare that meets the needs of individuals and families. BCHS still operates the only two primary care clinics in the Lower 9th Ward since Katrina, and continues to expand its mission: demonstrating the love of Christ by providing high-quality medical and behavioral healthcare.

Today, BCHS has five stand-alone locations across the region: New Orleans at 4960 St. Claude Ave. (main office), 4209 St. Claude Ave. (pediatrics) and 1616 Fats Domino Ave.; Chalmette at 221 W. Genie St. (pediatrics); and Mandeville at 1445 W. Causeway Approach.

Entering its second decade, BCHS is launching two new mobile care units – symbols of its ongoing commitment to closing healthcare gaps and responding swiftly in future disasters. One will provide daily dental care and will be able to convert to a mobile medical response unit. This is made possible through generous partnerships with LSU School of Dentistry, Abbott

Pharmaceuticals and Direct Relief. A second unit, funded by a behavioral health expansion grant from the Health Resources CEO Phillip Brodt and Services Administration, will focus on mental health alongside BCHS’ new innovative treatment offerings for substance abuse and depression.

“BCHS is for everyone, but especially for people like David*,” CEO Phillip Brodt said. “In the midst of alcoholism, ‘David’ found care, healing, and reconnection with his family through BCHS. We exist to see those kinds of positive transformations.”

To become a patient or learn more, call (504) 533-4999, email info@bchsnola.org, or visit bchsnola.org. *Name changed to protect patient information

Ask a Doctor

by Anthony Hoan Nguyen, MD

Choosing The Right Sunscreen For Kids Protecting your children’s skin from the sun is crucial.

By choosing the right sunscreen and applying it properly, you can help reduce their risk of sunburn and long-term skin damage. Sunscreens work by either absorbing the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation or by reflecting it. With so many sunscreen options available, it can be overwhelming to pick the right one.

Here is what you need to know to make an informed decision.

2 Main Types: 1) Mineral Sunscreens contain zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide, creating a physical barrier that reflects UV rays away from the skin. These sunscreens tend to offer more broad-spectrum coverage and begin working immediately after application. They are less likely to cause irritation to the skin, but may feel heavier. 2) Chemical Sunscreens contain chemical filters that absorb UV radiation. These tend to feel lighter on the skin and spread easily. However, they must be applied 15 to 30 minutes before sun exposure.

Chemical sunscreens may cause some skin irritation.

4 Protections: 1) Spectrum ensures that the sunscreen protects against UVA and UVB rays. 2) SPF 30 or higher is recommended by the American Academy of Dermatology. 3) Water resistant formulas are best if your child will be swimming or sweating. 4) Hypoallergenic and Fragrance-Free minimize the risk of skin irritation.

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Protecting your children’s skin from the sun is an important part of their overall health.

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Apply generously to allow the sunscreen to fully bind to the skin. Reapply frequently (every two hours or more if swimming/sweating), and don’t forget areas such as the tops of ears, back of the neck and tops of feet.

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Diggin in the Garden

by Anna Timmerman

Rain Gardens

Can Help Soggy Spots

O

ne thing we can count on in our area is that there will always be excessive rainfall at some point. If you have a yard with a persistent low area, this can bring frustration as the soggy spot refuses to dry quickly, leading to weedy plants moving in and difficulty mowing.

One solution is to turn that area into a rain garden, essentially creating a sponge of soil and plants that thrive in wet areas to help beautify and mitigate the excess moisture. Rain gardens are a great solution to low spots and are fairly easy to design and plant.

What to consider when installing: 1.

Location. Ideally, the rain garden should be 10 or more feet away from any foundations or piers to prevent sinking

2.

Rain gardens should be 25 feet or more away from septic systems or wellheads

3.

Partial to full sun is best for most rain garden plants

4. Next time it rains, observe the low spot and use flags or a hose, rope, or string to mark the contours of the area that has the bad drainage.

This will be the borders of your rain garden.

26 Summer Issue 2025

Prep The Site To get started, first dig and remove the existing vegetation or turf. You can also solarize or use herbicide if you choose. Remove the dead plant material from the rain garden site. Next, you’ll need to excavate out some of the existing soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches and replace it with a mix of 25% sand and 75% finished compost. This helps facilitate drainage and serves as an ideal medium for plants to thrive. When you backfill the rain garden, it should not be overly filled. You want there to be a slight depression so that the water from the surrounding landscape can flow into the compost and sand mixture.

Plants That Strive Plants That Strive Next, it’s time to plant!

Some wonderful, lowmaintenance plants that thrive in rain gardens include all species and hybrids of Louisiana iris, spider lily, crinum lily, rudbeckias, native species of hibiscus, cardinal flower,

Louisiana Iris

American beautyberry, dwarf palmetto, aquatic milkweed, swamp sunflower, cannas, calla lily, elephant ear, and American germander. If you want a tree or shrub for a focal point, parsley hawthorn, wax myrtle, yaupon holly, buttonbush, Virginia willow, and mayhaw are all good choices.

overtaking the garden. If you keep up with it, this task should take less time than it would have taken to mow the area.

Final Touches

For more information on rain gardens, visit www. lsuagcenter.com. For answers to gardening questions, email atimmerman@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Send photos for diagnosis and identification.

To finish your rain garden, mulch the areas around the plants with 3 to 4 inches of hardwood mulch.

The mulch helps to soak up additional moisture and protect the plants from drying out too quickly during drought conditions. Mulch also helps to prevent weeds from growing too quickly and

Anna Timmerman is an LSU AgCenter horticulture agent working in the Greater New Orleans area.

Email her: atimmerman@agcenter.lsu.edu

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Faces of the Parish

Newcomers and Longtime Residents

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Lois Edler, center, celebrates her 80th birthday in August with her daughter Sandra Edler, and granddaughter Avery Edler. The elder Edler was treated to a steak dinner at Crave.

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Rosie Pravata, a lifelong resident of St. Bernard Parish, celebrates her birthday at El Paso restaurant.

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Deidra Fernandez is a lifelong resident of Violet. “The people in the parish are friendly and I’ve met lots of good friends throughout the years”

4. Lifelong residents Zoey and Mott Fleming enjoy breakfast at Bright Star.

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6. Brothers Kendrick Isidore III and Francis Ross moved with their parents to Chalmette after Katrina.

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Londyn Melerine and Aubree Diaz love eating at Crave “We come here very often,” Melerine said. “It’s cheap for the amount of food you get. The service is phenomenal, and it’s very family friendly.’’

Stephanie Liccardi and Derek Rogers chilling at a pool party in Meraux.

Faces of the Parish

Newcomers and Longtime Residents

8. Mickey and Debbie Michalik, lifelong residents of St. Bernard Parish and owners of Tag’s Meat Market in Chalmette, celebrating their grandson Oliver’s first birthday.

9.

Scott Stearns is a lifelong resident, growing up in Chalmette. “The parish is a one-of-a-kind place. It’s a community of good citizens who take care of their community.”

10. Joshua Turnage Jr., 3, says he likes chicken and macaroni at Wow Wingery. “And I eat snowballs.”

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11. Cousins Ellie Mae St. Germain, Cole Cutrer, and Paisley Williams hang out after eating dinner at Crave in Meraux.

12. Christopher Collier moved to St. Bernard in August 2021 from Terrytown. “I like everything about living in Chalmette. It's different from where I grew up in Uptown; it’s quiet here.”

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13. Yessy Zoto, Yosuar Perez and Fany Zoto, who work at Don Cruz Snoballs, are newcomers to St. Bernard Parish.

Yessy has lived here five years, Yosuar four years and Fany one year.

14. Byron Schilling and his family enjoy time at El Paso restaurant. Schilling moved to St. Bernard in 2009 from Mississippi.

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Leading the Way in Kids' Care

Anthony Nguyen, MD Pediatrics

Ochsner Health Center - St. Bernard 8050 W Judge Perez Dr Chalmette, LA 504-826-9500

At St. Bernard Parish Hospital, our top priority is providing exceptional care for your exceptional kid. We offer a level of pediatric care unmatched across the region to help your family face anything, minor or major. Through our expert care, we are shaping a healthier future for our youngest patients close to home.

Visit ochsner.org/schedule to schedule an appointment.