Mennonite Central Committee

Ministry in a New Orleans suburb

Marla Pierson Lester
May 25, 2006

An interview with Pastor Lawrence Velasquez, serving as an MCC local hurricane response worker in Harahan, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans. For the past several months, he's worked with members of his church, Comunidad Cristiana Internacional, to help meet immediate needs, to assist homeowners in working through insurance claims and to hold together the congregation.

Q — About eight months has now passed since Hurricane Katrina struck. How has your role changed?

A — At first I worked to meet needs within the congregation. I am still helping people sort through insurance claims and paperwork. But now we have more time to reach out to the community, including to the Spanish-speaking workers who have come to New Orleans because of the construction boom. The church is growing little by little. We're still in the process of recovering and recuperating, but it's going really well.

Q — Because your apartment was damaged, you and your family moved into the church building. What is your housing situation now?

A — My wife and three children and I did live in the church building, as did other church members. At first we were sleeping in the main meeting area where we have worship. Once damage to the church roof was repaired, we were able to use the Sunday school rooms to sleep in. We looked around for apartments, but rents in the area have increased and we were not able to find anything we could afford. So we are moving into a FEMA trailer on my brother-in-law's land.

Q — Just before Hurricane Katrina struck, you led a number of evacuees and fellow church members out of New Orleans. Where did you go?

A — We went with about 35 people to Port Arthur, Texas. But we had to evacuate from there because of Hurricane Rita. We ended up in Arkansas. Then I took my family to Miami. We were there in October when Hurricane Wilma hit. Then we returned to New Orleans.

Q — What current needs do you see among people in the New Orleans area?

A — There are many injustices. The cost of housing is skyrocketing. It's hard to find affordable medical care. There are many, many workers who have come into the city, some of whom are not paid as promised for work they have done. I am trying to find insurance for families and for the church building that we can afford. I haven't been able to find anything that would work so far. However, MCC has agreed to pay insurance for the church for six months.

Q — You've also begun some work in anti-racism?

A — I've held two workshops at the church on anti-racism, using information from a Damascus Road training. The New Orleans area is changing greatly, with a number of new Latino workers coming in. Our congregation is predominantly Latino. We wanted to help our members to have the tools to deal with any prejudice or injustice they may encounter. The main focus we had was finding healing from any resentment that comes from experiences of discrimination. One of the things I feel convinced about is it's important to be able to heal and to forgive.