SPIRIT/ OU RELIEF MISSION TO NEW ORLEANS
After years of work and responsibility, retirees often see travel as a well-earned pleasure for rest and relaxation. The Orthodox Union SPIRIT Initiative offers travel with a very different purpose –a SPIRIT/OU Relief Mission combines meaningful volunteering with enjoyable and entertaining cultural experiences.
Recently, the SPIRIT / OU Relief Missions spent a week in New Orleans, focusing on providing chessed and practical support to underserved communities and people who are still struggling over 20 years after Hurricane Katrina.
Mission Overview
OU Relief Missions, under the direction of Rabbi Ethan Katz, has spent the past 20 years bringing teenagers, college students, and young adults to communities around the world to assist with disaster relief and recovery efforts. The OU SPIRIT Relief Mission was thoughtfully adapted for older adults who want to dedicate their time to chessed and learning about other communities, while enjoying local culture. The Mission was coordinated the OU Relief Mission team, together with OU SPIRIT, which is directed by Rebbetzin Judi Steinig. The group was fortunate to have the participation of Executive Fellow Elisheva Weiner, who has been working with Rebbetzin Steinig this year.
The mission ran from Monday, May 11-Sunday, May 17 with participants from New York City, New York; Phoenix, Arizona; Boca Raton, Florida; Baltimore, Maryland and Teaneck, New Jersey.
Volunteer Work in Action
Participants volunteered twice at the Ozanam Inn homeless shelter, where they spent several hours preparing vegetable and fruit salads, making sandwiches, and cooking scrambled eggs, pancakes, and hash browns for grateful guests. Rabbi Katz emphasized the significance of this work, reminding the group that many people are only one paycheck away from homelessness and that those receiving help deeply appreciate the kindness shown by Orthodox Jewish volunteers.
A visit to the Lower 9th Ward was especially moving. Much of the area remains underbuilt since Hurricane Katrina, and many of New Orleans’ poorest residents still live there. Participants met Burnell Colton, a lifelong resident who recognized that his neighborhood needed a grocery store. Because local residentsoften have to take three buses just to buy basic necessities, he used his own savings to open a store, laundromat, and internet café to serve the community. The mission participants were inspired by his story and grateful for the opportunity to help. They cleaned shelves and restocked them with donations purchased for the store. Burnell keeps prices low for his neighbors and even extends credit to those who cannot afford essentials.
Jewish Community and Shabbos
The Jewish community in New Orleans was once large and thriving, but its population steadily declined over the years, and Hurricane Katrina seemed to be a final blow. But the community members who chose to remain in New Orleans dedicated themselves to preserving their history and rebuilding for the future. One evening, the SPIRIT group joined members of Beth Israel for dinner and heard firsthand about the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the need to relocate the shul, and the way they continue to regrow the community. Rabbi Katz also brought the group to the site of the former shul and the cemetery, where seven Sifrei Torah and 3,000 seforim were buried after the storm.
Burial site for the 3000 seforim lost during Hurricane Katrina
Shabbos was spent in the heart of the city at Anshe Sfard. During the Friday night seudah, participants listened as Rabbi Katz shared his personal story, including his experience as an IDF paratrooper and how he came to found Relief Missions. On Shabbos afternoon, after lunch with members of the shul, Reva Judas-Director of Nechama Comfort and a member of the SPIRIT group-led a session about the organization’s work supporting families who have experienced pregnancy and infant loss.
Entertainment and Cultural Experiences
Each day combined meaningful volunteer work with opportunities to experience the local culture. Participants enjoyed:
- Jazz concert at Preservation Hall
- Steamboat ride on the Natchez
- Mule and buggy ride through the French Quarter
- Swamp tour, where many had the chance to hold a small alligator
- World War II museum
- Bowling at Rock ’n’ Bowl
- Beignets at Café du Monde
- Walking through the French Quarter
The mission concluded on Sunday, and participants agreed that it had been an inspiring, meaningful, and deeply rewarding experience.
Future SPIRIT Missions to other communities are being planned. If you are interested in joining a future SPIRIT mission, please let us know by completing this form.