A Katrina hero

I heard a really neat story on NPR the other morning on my way to work and I thought it was worth sharing.

They were interviewing this guy who had survived. Apparently he had put his wife on his shoulders to protect her as the floodwaters were rising. When the waters had risen above his head, he was walking along, jumping up to get breaths of air as he walked. He told God that if He would spare his life, he would do whatever he could to help other people. Before the water rose high enough to drown him, a boat pulled up & pulled him & his wife from the water. I don't know where he was given refuge, but wherever it was he dedicated himself to being the janitor for the place. He spent his time cleaning the toilets, emptying trash, etc. I guess he had been offered quite a bit of money in tips for doing what he did, but he didn't accept any of it. He said it was something he wanted to do and money wasn't any good to him in a destroyed city anyway.

Hearing this guy on the radio really choked me up. To be honest I didn't have a lot of respect for the people of New Orleans. Mardi Gras has to be the most immoral holiday celebration anywhere in the US, and the "when the going gets tough, the tough go looting" attitude of so many of the residents really disappointed me.

But here amidst all the bad news I found a hero. When his world fell apart he thought first of protecting his wife, then once she was safe he dedicated himself to helping others. Wow.