An Ode to United Saints- Maria Rios

Being as young as I am, I have definitely not seen many adults who demonstrate true passion for what they dedicate themselves to. My parents and my teachers might like their job but sometimes you can tell that they are simply not passionate abut getting up every day to do what they do. Not until I met Mr. Kane did I first see someone who truly worked with this distinct commitment and passion that I had not seen in any of my other teachers before. Believe me, not everyone would take time out of their February vacation to bring 40 high school students on a nevertheless risky trip. And I truly admire this of Mr. Kane. I sincerely admire passionate people.

Thus, on our first day, when we sat at the debriefing meeting the permanent United Saints volunteers hold, the first thing that I noticed was how passionate every single one of them were. About the organization, their work, the city if New Orleans and its people. As I quietly sat today on the balcony of the Saints housing building, I could see the founder of the organization backing up his truck with his two dogs sitting on the bed of the truck, and I was amazed by this man.

After Katrina hit the city, Darryl came down for some temporary volunteer work. After he returned home, he realized that he couldn't just leave and not think about all the other people in the city who did not get the chance to receive his help. Thus, Darryl left everything he had in his home state of Minnesota to come here to New Orleans and create the United Saints. For years he has worked with permanent volunteers to slowly restore the city unlike any other organization around. The thing is, that, that special thing about United Saints is that they are not helping just other people and their outside community; volunteers at United Saints are helping to restore their own home. Everyone here in this organization considers New Orleans their home and after three years of coming here, I consider New Orleans my home too.

Of all the things that I would like to hold on to from this trip, I would like to hold on to that sense of community and passion that the volunteers at United Saints have demonstrated every day. I want t remember the cool, humid morning air that envelops you as you walk out of your room, and the smell and heat of the campfire we hold every night at reflection in the courtyard. As much as I want to hold on to all these things, I know that no matter what, United Saints will always be my home, if maybe just in that chamber in my heart that I reserve for those things special.