For the Kids of Katrina

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2007-12-22T16:11:00.000-08:00

Imagine losing all of your earthly possessions and coming home to complete destruction or nothing left but your foundation. When hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana there was a place, St. Bernard Parish that had 27,000 homes that were ALL destroyed. The people of St. Bernard are unique in that they all lost and slowly they are returning home to rebuild together.

In February of 2007 my family and 20 others from San Clemente, California went to Louisiana and we built a playground at Andrew Jackson school, (an old high school) which housed 2,200 kids. In July we were able to return with 21 new people to build a second playground at the first elementary school to open, J.F. Gauthier. Our lives have been so affected by these trips. There is so much devastation that has hit Louisiana it is heart wrenching. We left Louisiana in July knowing we would be back to build some more.

Our plan is to raise $70,000 for a third playground to be built in August of 2008. This playground will be built at the next elementary school to open in St. Bernard Parish, and we’ll travel during our children’s summer vacation. Currently we are selling sweatshirts and we’ve raised about $59,000 so far, but we need more resources to get this playground built! We are working with a nonprofit 501(c) 3 organization called Kids Around the World. Their goal is to build hope by building playgrounds. All donations are tax deductible and checks can be sent to Kids directly or you can donate online at www.kidsaroundtheworld.com and type for the Kids of Katrina in the box provided. Thank you for your time and I know that together we can bring more hope to Louisiana.

For the kids of Katrina,
The Perez Family (Mark, Debbie, Billy, Mary, Delaney, and Teddy)

Playground Photos

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New Orleans playground - Summer 07

This first picture is a before picture. You can see that the elementary school was still under construction. This school flooded and the water failed to recede and the school was infested with rats, fleas and snakes. Thankfully the school opened a few weeks later, Aug. 15, 2007.

Four days later this beautiful playground was built and the principal and asst. principal were emotional as they looked at it.

In the words of the asst. principal the day after we left:
The rain has been pouring here today, but I felt compelled to drive to Gauthier to stare at the marvelous site that is now our playground. I feel drawn to it. Before it was erected and with so much undone in the community surrounding the school site, it was difficult to imagine a school rising at that site - but now it is a school again. I can more clearly see the light at the end of that tunnel. It is very hard to put into words what this project means to us. The playground serves as a monument to HOPE!

Summer 07

Press Coverage

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L-R, Jesse Mikulec, Debbie Perez, Delaney Perez and Dana Brown labor to complete a donated playground for Andrew Jackson Elementary School.
Photo by Fred Swegles / Orange County Register

'Kids of Katrina,' part 3
Perez family seeks help funding a third playground in New Orleans
Read Article - OC Register 10/11/2007

Back to New Orleans
For the second time this year, San Clemente family helps build a playground for Hurricane Katrina victims.
Read Article - OC Register 7/19/2007

Back to New Orleans
Local family that helped build a playground for hurricane victims in February decides to do another
Read Article - OC Register 4/26/2007

Spreading the love
Church members spend vacation time building a playground for kids.
Read Article - OC Register 2/22/2007

AFTER KATRINA: From left, Mary Perez, Billy Perez, Delaney Perez and Jesse Mikulec test out a playground they had just helped build at a school in New Orleans.
Fred Swegles, Sun Post News

Support

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Donate online with Kids Around the World
Donate Now - when you make a donation, please type Kids of Katrina in the memo box

Purchases that will support our Playgrounds

4 Kids of Katrina Sweatshirts

Buy sweatshirts online at Cause Depot Charcoal Sweatshirt | Navy Sweatshirt
You can also by the Sweatshirts at Dewey Weber and Fluid Surf in San Clemente, CA.

Amazon
4%-10% of your purchase goes right to the playground fund.
http://www.amazon.com/?tag=kidarothewor-20

This Hawaiian website offers 40% back to the playground when you type the code (HKRF):
www.hawaiianseabotanicals.com

About Us

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Debbie Perez and family were looking to help in a third world country. However a trip to New Orleans came up and they ventured off in February 2007 to build a playground. When she arrived in Louisiana Debbie realized she had found her "third world country" right here in the United States. The Gulf Coast has a long way to go in recovering from the Katrina disaster. It desperately needs the help of it’s fellow americans to extend their hands to get it restored. This is just a small piece of the work but it has made a big difference in the lives of many children and the surrounding communities already. Although much has been done much more is needed to continue rebuilding the lives of the people in this area. So we ask that you will also join in the efforts and be a part of the solution. Help us build hope in the lives of Children in New Orleans.

Photo: Fred Swegles, Sun Post News