Today was our final day in NOLA!! We started off the day with cafe au lait and beignets from the famous Cafe du Monde. After that we made our way to The Presbytere, a museum dedicated to the history of hurricanes in New Orleans, with a focus on Hurricane Katrina. This was an immersive and interactive exhibit. For me the most impactful portion was the accounts from the citizens of New Orleans. This gave me new perspectives on Katrina that were emotional and unfiltered. Finally, in the spirit of Saint Patrick’s Day we attended the parade which ran through Jackson Square. This was a new experience in that we walked right up to the parade and got to celebrate along side everyone participating in the parade.
This week has been a great opportunity to shed light on a rebuilding city and to learn the history behind the disaster that caused such devastation. We worked hard all week long to immerse in the culture and understand community revitalization in New Orleans. Now as the week ends, please remember to follow us on Instagram and twitter: @msunola. Over the next couple months we will be shifting our focus back to Springfield. This will introduce our participants to the social justice topic of community revitalization in Springfield. Through education and service we will expand our knowledge about community revitalization and continue our work toward being an active citizen in our communities.
Also, there is still time to support our trip. Hopefully you’ve been following along with us all we week, if you’d like to support us further, please visit our page on GiveCampus!