The Mission Newsletter-May 2011
Ridin’ the Storm Out
After Hurricane Katrina destroyed Ralph and Tokoyo’s home, your generosity is helping them build a firm foundation for a new life.
In the days leading up to August 29, 2005, Ralph and his nine-year-old son, Tokoyo, gave little thought to looming Hurricane Katrina. Despite warnings to evacuate their New Orleans home, they determined to ride it out.
“We didn’t take it seriously,” says Ralph, a freelance photographer and videographer. “We’d heard warnings to evacuate hurricanes before. So we thought we’d just wait this one out like all the others.”
But this time the levees broke, and within a matter of hours almost 80% of New Orleans was underwater —including Ralph and Tokoyo’s home.
“We had to climb onto the roof of our house,” Tokoyo recalls. “I saw people waving flags from their houses and other people crawling through the water.” With no help in sight, Ralph and Tokoyo found an airbed floating by and decided to use it to escape.
“We had to leave everything behind,” Ralph says. “Clothes, music, all my cameras, everything. I had shot a lot of great photos of the flood and the devastation. But I lost it all.”
Ralph and Tokoyo paddled through waters teeming with toxic chemicals, snakes, dead animals — and dead people. Several hours later, they found their way to the Louisiana Superdome, along with 26,000 other refugees from the Category 5 storm.
A Five-Year Journey to Skid Row
Weeks later, after the waters subsided, Ralph and Tokoyo returned home. They were unable to salvage anything. Ralph was forced to start his life over without any money or resources. Over the next five years, father and son tried settling in Shreveport, Louisiana; Texas; Seattle; and finally Los Angeles, seeking lost family members and new opportunities.”
I thought we could move in with my grandmother in Los Angeles and maybe get a fresh start,” Ralph says. “But that didn’t work out and we ended up homeless again.”
So last fall, Ralph brought Tokoyo —now 14 years old — to Union Rescue Mission, the only rescue mission in Los Angeles that shelters single dads with teenage sons.
“When we first got here,” Ralph recalls, “the staff just wrapped themselves around us and got us hooked up with medical and dental help, and mental health care. They got my son into school and tutoring. And then they got us thinking about getting back on the road to self-independence. We got good food, good prayer, good help, and good feelings. I got a positive attitude back.”
Daring to Dream Again
Today, Ralph and Tokoyo have found a transitional living space, and Ralph is seeking additional training so he try to break into the communications field in Los Angeles. Tokoyo is finding the hope to dream again too.
“Hurricane Katrina took a big toll on my life,” he says. “But someday I want my kids to know that you can always come out of bad circumstances and become a big person.”
And Ralph adds, “My son and I struggled for five years. I finally found people who cared here at Union Rescue Mission. If it wasn’t for them, we’d be out on the streets. So I thank God for this Mission every day.”
A Costly Commitment to Care
I’ll never forget the phone call I received from a local pastor in October 2008. “Andy,” he said, “I have a two-parent Christian family, with a precious three-year-old daughter, that has lost their job and home. They’ve used up all their savings and have nothing left. I’ve looked everywhere for someplace that can shelter them until they can get back on their feet. Will you help?”
Though Union Rescue Mission wasn’t set up to help two-parent families like this, I said “yes.” That’s when I realized, because of the worsening recession, we would soon face a tsunami of families that would need our help. And I knew I would not be able to sleep at night if we didn’t step up.
Today we are the only rescue mission in Los Angeles that houses single moms with children, single dads with children, two-parent families with children, and families with teenage children. Our commitment to never turn anyone away who needs our help has stretched our budget beyond the breaking point. Yet we will never back away from that commitment.
Thank you for sharing our commitment.
Blessings,
Andy Bales, CEO
