Rebuilding Lives

Jason Carr lived in a house next door to his parent’s house in Gulfport, Mississippi. He married his high school sweetheart, Katie, and together they were starting a family. On August 29, 2005, Katie drove Jason’s parents and their 4 year old daughter Sherrie (pin curls and all) to a neighboring town north of them to visit some relatives. That was the day the Hurricane Katrina hit the mainlands of America.

The hurricane chose Jason’s small town of Gulfport, Mississippi to first hit land and seemingly brought the Gulf of Mexico with it.

When I visited Jason and his family, Jason shared what exactly happened to his house when the storm came. Water began to flood his neighborhood, and then started to fill his house. He was trapped inside his house and found only one open window that he could climb out of just before being overtaken by the water inside his home. Jason must have swum and floated for over an hour before he could find land that was not covered by the flood. Thank goodness his family came out of this alive. Their house was another story.

I joined forces with a church group and was able to help Jason and his parents rebuild their homes. During that trip, I found that there was so much more to do in that area and that it will easily take a decade to rebuild the areas affected by that hurricane.

One of the best memories that I have from that trip is seeing the tears of joy in Katie’s eyes when she saw the archway that she asked me to build. Katie said, “My baby will finally be able to enjoy Christmas morning in our own home, I don’t know how to begin to thank you.” Everyone in our group took part in building the arch and it became an iconic symbol of service back to the community.

An archway of service that spans the gap that we all need to help fill is available to you too. Help families like Jason and Katie’s – without costing you a dime.

Lane Architecture + Design, P.C. is offering our clients an opportunity to give a tax deductible donation to help the families who lost their homes during the Hurricane Katrina disaster. We know that it has been almost 3 years since this monster wave came crashing into Gulfport, Mississippi and then wiped out much around New Orleans. But, the area is still in need of our help today.

We will donate up to $300 in our client’s name for every client that begins a new project with us before August 29, 2008 (exactly 3 years after the devastating day of Hurricane Katrina). Call us at 212-594-2007 to learn more about this opportunity and to begin rebuilding another family’s home who needs desperately needs their home back while having your architectural needs fulfilled at the same time. We all gain when we give.