TCNJ Bonner NOLA 2019

These first few days have been really enjoyable for me. Not only have I spent time bonding with my fellow first years more than I have this past semester, I’ve also gotten to know some of the chaperones a bit better. The time spent painting the siding of the house, trimming baseboards for the floor, and conversing with everyone was truly amazing. I am excited to see the final product of the house that displays all of our hard work and determination. After going on a tour of the city, we witnessed how even after 13 years the city has yet to be rebuilt. Throughout my experience thus far I have learned how resilient the residents of NOLA truly are. By having this opportunity to help build a house for a person who has, for example, not been able to return to NOLA since Hurricane Katrina is an uplifting and unforgettable experience.

Going into this trip I am looking forward to developing stronger relationships with my Bonner Class. I’m looking forward to working with them on our SBP projects! I can’t wait to see the result of all of our hard work and determination. Prior to this trip, I learned in our FSP that FEMA underestimated the severity of the Hurricane Katrina that was headed towards NOLA, thereby sending only a quarter of available search and rescue teams to the region. Not only did they send a quarter of their available teams but they did not send any personnel to New Orleans until after the storm had passed. I hope while on the trip I’ll be able to gain understanding of how far New Orleans has come, years after Hurricane Katrina has passed, and how they have slowly been able to recover since. I’m looking forward to helping rebuild houses in the lower ninth ward with my fellow Bonner Community Scholars and others involved with SBP.

So far, the trip has lived up and exceeded my expectations. I have learned a lot about the city of New Orleans and have been able to explore it while still serving the 9th Ward community. I also have gotten closer to everyone in Bonner. Living with everyone and spending the day with all of my fellow Bonner students has given me the opportunity to rekindle friendships. The most surprising part of the trip so far was the ability to serve all day and still have the trip feel like vacation. Working till late afternoon gives me the opportunity to do a lot of work. Every night, there is something to do such as having free time in the French Quarter, playing games with my other Bonners, or even seeing a basketball game. I am able to appreciate the work I’m doing while still having some part of a vacation. Before the trip is over, I would like to learn a little more of the traditions and cultures of New Orleans such as how the French Quarter came to be or why Mardi Gras is a tradition.

The trip has met some original expectations. Honestly, I thought we’d would assist/help with the laying of the houses literal foundation but stepping back now it’s probably better that we had not. Although, we did get to do some pretty cool and handy things within the house such as flooring, using the electric saw to cut and put in baseboards, and painting ceilings. Going into the French Quarter at night was enjoyable as well but besides sightseeing and eating there wasn’t too much to do which was pretty surprising. On the contrast it’s surprising in a shocking factor that so many individuals/families fell victim to contractor fraud and that those who committed such acts took advantage of those in such a fragile state. The trip has brought the Bonner girls closer together which is a positive thing. Before the trip is over, I would like to learn more about “The Living Ninth Ward” and current situations of the Lower Ninth Ward (without being invasive to current residents).

The trip has met some of my expectations as well as not met some of them. I knew we would be doing work on a house, but I did not know what exactly that entailed. We were split into two groups, which is something I did not expect. My group has been doing painting for the most part, which has been surprisingly more difficult than I first thought it would be. Wednesday (today) we could not paint because it was raining, so we went to a different house. This house was very different. It had a very interesting backstory, unlike the other house we worked on. This house is owned by an old woman, and it must have been so beautiful before Hurricane Katrina. It has not been repaired much at all since, and that made me so sad because of how much the woman and her family clearly cared about it. It's so heartbreaking that every time she tried to get it repaired, she was conned and her house is still not fixed after so much time. We were gutting the house, which was very difficult and kind of s

This trip was not what I expected or planned it to be. It has been so much more filling and a great experience so far. It is difficult because of school work to get our class together a lot of the times, so this has been such a great bonding experience as well. I have gotten to know those in my class even more and work and laugh with them. A challenge so far has been the work on the floors. It was very tedious but as a group we were able to get it done and it was such a great feeling. I would definitely like to get to know my class more and the history of Katrina and its impact.

Although it has only been three days since we arrived at United Saints, it feels like we've been here forever. Now at first that sentence may seem negative, but I wholeheartedly mean it in a positive way. In these last three days, I have made so many unforgettable memories and immersed within the culture of New Orleans, where  it almost feels like our group has been here for several days. Although at times the construction components of the house can be tedious and repetitive, with only three days of work, the house has changed drastically. Did I mention the mouth-watering and unique flavors of the food offered here? After learning about the history and roots of New Orleans prior to working on the houses I realized how much our presence and service meant to this community. Moreover, I was surprised to see how United the community was even through many of the drastic experiences they have faced. As the time goes on, I hope to learn from the individuals here and grow as person. Until

Words can’t explain how I feel on this  trip right now. The amount of inspiration, culture, and learning experiences this city has to offer is amazing. Living in my tiny living space with all my friends has been nothing but fun. I was a little worried about how it would work out, but now that I’m here I have nothing to say but positive things. I have bonded with so many new people, and have met some really amazing people while I’ve been here. I am learning so many new things, and skills that I never knew I could do. I am so excited to see what the rest of the week entails and everything else I will get to experience while I’m here. 

I expected the work to be difficult, and I was not wrong. There’s a lot of back breaking work that leaves my body sore by the end of the day, but it has been a lot of fun so far. I’ve talked to people whom I don’t usually talk to, and I’ve become closer to some of my friends. I have also learned more about the devastation that hurricane Katrina has had on New Orleans, specifically in the lower ninth ward. I liked the tour because I was able to see the different neighborhoods. The garden district was beautiful and the touristy areas were very nice. But I’m glad that we were also shown the ninth ward and areas that have not been sufficiently repaired since the hurricane. The most surprising part so far has been that painting is actually a very difficult and tiring job. By the end of the trip I hope to learn more skills while working on the house beyond painting skills. And I would also like to become closer to even more Bonners and chaperones

This trip has meet my expectations in terms of service. I expected that I would paint the homes. Most of my service on this trip was painting homes.  The damage was worse than I expected. Many houses haven’t been rebuilt. There are plenty of empty spaces. Seashells and clamshells were under the houses I worked on. There is much work that needs to be done for New Orleans to completely recover from Hurricane Katrina. The most surprising part was how bad the damage was and how much income disparity exist in one city. When the trip is over, I would like to learn more about the truth on income inequality in our country.

This trip so far has met my expectations because I have gotten closer to my fellow Bonners and I have had a lot of fun with working on the houses. I think the most surprising part has been that I didn’t realize how much fun the work would be. Being able to paint the house has been a very rewarding experience. Before this trip ends I would like to become closer with the chaperones. I would also like to try other work besides painting. Overall this experience has been awesome and I can’t wait to continue the work!

The trip so far has definitely exceeded the expectations that I had prior to the trip. I knew that I was going to bond more with my Bonner class but I did not know how much closer we would become. Getting to see everyone everyday, instead of just for FSP, had made me very happy because I am learning new things about each person every day that we are in New Orleans. Some of the people that I have been talking to are the ones that I don’t usually see at school and who are not in my site for service during the semester. I can also say the same for the chaperones, I have never talked to many of them and now that I know who they are I can't wait to say hi to them whenever I see them on campus. The service aspect of the trip is also nothing that I expected. If someone had told me that I would be demolishing a house I would not believe them. Because of the rainy weather today, my group had to go to a different house in the area. At first I was confused on why we were helping to

New Orleans is very different from how it is portrayed in the media. For the general public, it is a city of night parties, drinking, and other festivities. For people that think back to Katrina, New Orleans is shown as a wasteland with specific areas dedicated to tourism to cover up the problems. As I have come to observe, both viewpoints are not necessarily false, as there is both a nightlife and devastation, but we hardly see the average resident. From what I have come to learn from locals of New Orleans, the community still needs work, but they have come a long way thus far. The areas that have been previously listed as “unsafe” in the city are far better now as the communities have banded together to help their neighbors. Honestly, meeting residents of the city on my morning jogs have been the most eye opening experiences of the trip, as they share true and unfiltered stories. I’d love to hear more of these, as they truly represent New Orleans’ resilience to disparity

Today is the day before leaving for New Orleans. I have literally no clue what to expect and thus have no expectations from the trip. I’m not sure if I’m looking forward yet. Should be a learning experience. Long road ahead.

I am very excited for my freshman trip to New Orleans with my Bonner class. Every upperclassman that attended has all said positive remarks about the trip, and I hear a common phrase that ‘it is one of the most fun experiences in Bonner’. That being said, I expect the trip to be one of the best experiences the Bonner program offers, to grow closer to my Bonner community, and to give back to an overlooked part of society. I have only spent a semester with my Bonner class, but I am really happy to be apart of it because we have already developed a strong community and friendship. This bond gives me the confidence that my trip to New Orleans will live up to, and even exceed, my expectations.   Towards the end of the fall semester, I learned about the impact Hurricane Katrina had on the poor and minority communities of New Orleans. I’ve seen the damage through a documentary and pictures, but it is always different to see it in person. To walk the streets of a neighborhoo