Once Chris heard the News of Hurricane Katrina and the devastation caused, he decided he had to leave North Carolina to help those that needed it.

He spoke with his boss at that time - Ryan Gadow of Gadow Guitars - and the 2 set out to locate some Chain saws, Water & Gas. I would be willing to bet Food was somewhere on the list, too. Before they knew it - they  were on the road heading towards the zones in need of relief. Though they heard "there were already people there to help" or "You will only be in the way" -  they went anyway. Since Chris & Ryan were among the first civilians to show up in Gulfport, I believe they proved the common naysayers wrong.  Heck - the US Government and the Red Cross were not even there to help.

Chris & Ryan (as well as the guys they met along the way, including Stewart - who wrote the note below and posted the pics) made it, despite closed roads, no road signs and many, many obstacles. One bit from Chris that stands out - his excitement for being 'deputized' and told to protect their goods - at any cost.

Once in Gulfport, Chris, Ryan and their new comrades, including Stewart, cut trees off of peoples' homes and helped in the best ways they knew.

Sure makes you realize the difference one person can make.

At this time it is so hard to explain Chris' stories without him near. I could never predict his thoughts or words and loved hearing his version of things. He had meant to write about this trek to Katrina - yet time flew by so fast, and he never (as far as we know) jotted down the events. He DID however share the story with many. Feel free to write me if you have anything to add. I would love to hear it! Beelady13@gmail.com

KATRINA

You've all certainly heard about Hurricane Katrina hitting Louisiana and Mississippi.  New Orleans has turned into a tragic situation, but Mississippi actually had far, far worse damage.  When I saw what happened on Tuesday, I gathered a few friends to drive down to help over the Labor Day weekend.  Three friends and I left Thursday night and returned today.

 

We spent most of the time cutting trees with chainsaws and giving out food and water.  It was the most horrific devastation you could ever imagine.  The smell of death sat stale in the air, and there was no law.  We actually arrived before the Red Cross, and we were the second civilian volunteers to show up.

 

We were told not to go, and we were told that it would be dangerous.  But, the people on the coast were incredibly grateful, and we were simply told that we could do whatever we needed to do to protect ourselves.  At the very beginning, an officer told us specifically to take guns and to shoot anyone if they attacked us.  Carrying as many supplies as we were, we got some serious stares.  At one point, my roommate had to ride on the trailer on the four-wheeler holding a gun to make sure people wouldn't loot us.  It was awesome.

 

However, the death toll, in spite of what the news will say, is rising into the thousands.  The day after we got there, a refrigerated tractor trailer showed up, a temporary morgue to stack the bodies.  By the time we left, there were nine full trailers of bodies.  You could smell them everywhere.

 

My (Stewarts') family lost quite alot, and my uncle has been living in his former yard, at one point having to scavenge through the rubble for food.  But, he's tough, and we've all made it.  No one in my family died.

 

I thought y'all would like to see some of the pictures, even though they don't begin to capture the magnitude of the destruction.

Stewart

Click here to see the pictures.