Sent:   Sun Aug 28 22:14:57 2005
Subject:        RE: Hurricane Katrina

I am very worried about this one.

Sent:   Sun Aug 28 21:44:13 2005
Subject:        RE: Hurricane Katrina

28 foot waves….this is horrible..those poor folks…trying to get out…

From: Stocks, John
Sent: Sun Aug 28 14:05:47 2005
Subject: Hurricane Katrina

It looks as though I can’t get hurricanes out of my life. Talked to my Dad who is going to ride it out in New Orleans. Can’t convince him to leave. Stubborn.

My grandparents lost their home on the Mississippi Gulf Coast during Camille in 1969, the last category 5 hurricane to hit the U.S.

From: Stocks, John
Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2005 12:45:12 +0000
Subject: Hurricane Katrina

Still have not heard from my father or brother.

Spoke with Lucinda’s daughter, Lois Ann. We grew up together. She is in Jackson with nine family members in a Comfort Inn. No water or electricity. She was going to move to a shelter because of the cost of the hotel. I told her to stay put and covered the hotel. She thinks the family home is under water.

The breech in the Bucktown levee is a very serious matter if they can’t get it fixed quickly..

I am probably going to have to take some time off to help the Ewell’s and my father and brother.  This is more serious than I thought at first. I will keep you posted.

From: Stocks, John
Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2005 14:34:05 +0000
Subject: HURRICANE KATRINA

It is not my nature to bring my personal business into the work place but what I am going to share with you is distracting me and you need to be aware of it.

My father and his wife (New Orleans) stayed in his home in New Orleans to “ride out” the hurricane. He is 75. I have not been able to contact him.

I believe that my brother and his family stayed at his home in Slidell, La. The city of Slidell is totally under water. I have not been able to contact him.

Thankfully, Lucinda’s (the women who raised me) family evacuated to Jackson. They are holed up in a Comfort Inn. Nine in a room. My deepest appreciation to Agnes Smith’s son who just went and checked on them. They are without electricity or running water buy are safe and dry.

Of less importance is my condo on Orange Beach, Alabama of which there is more damage after repairing it after a direct hit from Hurricane Ivan last year.

Needless to say I am distracted by these events. I will keep you posted about when I will be headed to New Orleans once the city is opened up.

From: Stocks, John
Date: Thu, 1 Sep 2005 22:29:07 +0000
Subject: HURRICANE KATRINA – YOUR OFFERS OF HELP ARE NOW NEEDED

Many of you are aware of my deep family roots in New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

For the past few days I have been struggling to contact family and friends in the New Orleans area to ascertain their circumstances in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Many of you have offered your thoughts, prayers and assistance.

I have identified loved ones in need and will open an account tomorrow to assist them. Anyone who contributes will get a report of how the money is spent.

I do not this to compete with other efforts to assist Hurricane Katrina victims.

Here is a brief status report of the situation from my vantage point:

My father and his wife ‘rode out the storm’ but as of yesterday have abandoned their home in the face of rising water, civil unrest, no prospects for the restoration of water, sewer and power service in the near future and loss of employment. At age 75 with 40 years of a psychiatric/psychoanalytic practice in New Orleans, his career may be over. He is a brilliant therapist who is very sad.

They are enroute to Wisconsin to live with my wife and kids for an undetermined period of time. They will arrive tomorrow with their 3 dogs, 2 cats and a homeless acquaintance who attended a local university. I am least worried about them and we will take care of them.

As a child I was raised in significant measure by Lucinda Ewell. She was there the day I was born and she walked me out the door to college. She passed earlier this year. Her family has always been close to me. Two of her grown daughters (Lois and Eloise) are stranded in Jackson, MS., in a Comfort Inn with seven other adults and children. There is no power or hot water. They only brought a few changes of clothes because they thought they were only going to be there a couple of days. Through the help of NEA leaders and staff and the Mississippi Association of Educators President and staff, they now have groceries and laundered clothes. May the Great Spirit bless you.

Eloise lost everything to flood waters. Her house is submerged. Her car is in her driveway. Her daughter and three elementary school age grandchildren are with her at the motel.

Lois’ neighborhood is flooded as well. She thinks she has lost everything but she is praying for a better outcome. Her daughter and four year old granddaughter are with her.

They don’t know if they will have a home or jobs when and if they return to New Orleans.

Lois and Eloise’s older brother, Percy, is missing.

I have asked them to consider coming to McFarland, Wisconsin and putting the kids in school here. They need to be in school and we have great public schools here. The Ewell families will need lots of help.

Adam, my baby brother is a survivor. He is the IT manager for Charter Communications in Louisiana. He and his wife and three children lost everything to the flood waters in his hometown of Slidell, LA. He is a former New Orleans Police Department paramedic and I suspect he may have been pressed into service. I have not been able to reach him since Tuesday after the storm passed but he and his family were safe then.

Anything you can give will be put to good use.

From: Stocks, John
Date: Sat, 3 Sep 2005 03:51:26 +0000
Subject: HURRICANE KATRINA

Today was spent preparing for the arrival of my father, his wife, the homeless college student and the animals.

My brother in law, Jon Glover, came over and we spent the day cleaning up the basement family room and storage area.

Daddy, Tiina and Shawn (the homeless college student) arrived @ 3pm. Exhausted from the storm and the travel. My father has aged considerably since I saw him earlier this year. He is most concerned about his patients and how they are coping with the aftermath of Katrina.

We turned  our back porch into a dog kennel. Trips to Menards for fencing and plexiglass. The dogs are settled for now.

We arranged for Shawn to travel on to Minneapolis. He is going to stay with his girlfriend’s mother and travel on to Portland, Oregon. He took such good care of my father, his wife and the animals.

Tomorrow we focus on the Ewell families in Jackson, MS.

Power is back on at the Comfort Inn in Jackson. Spoke to Eloise and she said the MAE staff (Lisa?) was checking on them regularly. Eloise was overcome with emotion when she spoke about the help from the MAE staff. God bless them. Thank you George Williams.

The problem now is the lack of gasoline. Lois and Eloise may go to Atlanta to look for work. I have tried calling them this evening for my twice a day check ins but have not been able to get through due to circuit problems.

I asked Eloise and Lois to think about coming to the Madison area to put their grandkids in school. We will talk again tomorrow.

Still no word on the condition of Lois’ house. Still no word from their brother Percy as of early this morning.

Pray for him.

Brother Adam called tonight and spoke with our dad. Daddy broke down and cried over the phone. It is hard for a son to see his father cry. He had not talked to Adam since before the storm.

Adam will call tomorrow to let me know what he needs to repair the damage to his home. I anticipate hauling a generator, sheetrock, the pop-up and other provisions to Slidell next week.

Adam is on a seven days a week work schedule in order to get Charter Communications back up. If they find out he is a former police department papramedic, the may conscript him.  His wife Becky is going to manage the repair of their flooded home. Their children’s school may not open for a couple of months.  I suspect Becky will need some help managing these circumstances. We will discuss with them sending the kids to Wisconsin for school.

People started arriving at the house today with checks and other provisions. It is overwhelming and I too could not hold back my emotions. This has been an emotional rollercoaster. I can only thank the Great Spirit for the safety of my loved ones and the generosity of my colleagues, family and friends.

If you would like to assist the Ewell families….you can send contributions made out to me.

I will give all contributors a full accounting how it is used.

Good night…long day tomorrow.