The Bay St. Louis Blues

(to follow The Roses, Revisited)

I think I've made this point quite clear: My musical experiences have significantly enhanced and appreciated my personal growth throughout my life. I will forever value the opportunities that have been available to me as a result of this. And what better way to recognize the value of these skills than give others the chance to have the same sort of experiences?

During my sophomore year at Michigan, Hurricane Katrina terrorized the Gulf Coast. From miles away in Michigan, we could only hear stories and see pictures of the destruction, but we couldn't really fathom its enormity. We had heard that entire high schools had been washed away and were having difficulties rebuilding. My fraternity brothers and I spearheaded an instrument and music drive in the Detroit area to gather instruments for a high school music program that was destroyed and discontinued due to the hurricane.

By the time Spring Break rolled around, we had gathered $40,000 worth of instruments, and were preparing to caravan and deliver them to a needy high school in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. While others were tanning in Cancun, we crammed 16 people into 4 cars, and began driving south. After my initial concerns, I was happy to see that Alabama and Mississippi weren't quite as backwards as I thought. I mean...they did actually have roads, and electricity, and even a couple of democrats over down thar.

When we got to Bay St. Louis, the destruction was mindblowing. Seven months after the Hurricane, it looked as if the area was devastated only recently. Clearly, reconstruction was a formidable task, and Bay St. Louis was not getting as much attention as the bigger cities like New Orleans. We delivered the instruments to St. Stanislaus High School, where the principal gave us a tour and vivid description of the extent of the damage. The band director was elated to see our donation, as he was laid off due to the fact that there was no band room in which to teach, and could now regain his position and better support his wife and newborn baby. To celebrate the donation, some of the students joined us in performing at the Bay St. Louis Mardi Gras Parade. I was part of the makeshift drumline as a cymbal player. Our performance quality fell somewhere in between "amateur" and "drunken USC Trojan band sound."

In addition to all of this, we did some volunteer work clearing debris, repairing electrical damage, and rebuilding a kitchen. My duties involved ripping rotten floorboards away and replacing them with better tiling. In all honesty, I was really REALLY bad at this. I felt like I was doing more permanent damage than Hurricane Katrina itself, yet the lead volunteers assured me that I was only slightly inept.

We also replaced an entire roof that was rotting away from the rain damage. Now, I could actually handle this task. In fact, I'd say that I did a pretty decent job even. Perhaps holding the powerful nail gun in my hands just amplified my confidence and efficiency. Maybe that's why these Southerners love their guns and NRA memberships. It gives them a false sense of confidence and strength that blinds them from their own incompetence. I mean...uhhh....yeah, guns rock! Hey, y'all, let's build us a dad-gamn roof and then head over to Applebee's for some beers and some ribs! And then we'll get drunk and go obliterate Auburn in the Iron Bowl! Go, BAMA! Go, DUBYA! Long live the Confederacy!

Ooops...focus focus focus. Anyway, in the end, it was a great and fulfilling trip. It really inspired us to value those opportunities that we often take for granted, like even having THE CHANCE to play an instrument in high school. Hopefully our work was successful in offering these Mississippi students a sense of normalcy since the hurricane.

Since we left, the donated instruments have been put to use, and the high school band program has been reinstated. So, if you ever find yourself in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, stop by and listen to the St. Stanislaus band and let me know how they sound! But, if you see any rebuilt roofs that have recently collapsed....well....no.....you don't have to let me know about that.