Success so Far Katrina was a wake up call for me. I grew up in Louisiana and my family still lives there. After the storm, I talked to my sister and she told me about the distress, the lack of assistance and the great suffering. Hearing this, a surge of depression hit me so strong, it left me numb. When my daughter, Teisha, asked me what was wrong, I told her about my sister’s conversation. I told her how people, especially black people, were being treated, discriminated against, how difficult it was to get by and how helpless I felt without any resources to help them. Teisha, said to me, “If anybody can do anything for those people, Dad, you can do it!” These were the words that got my adrenalin going and have kept me going ever since. That was the beginning of my vision. I went to the town clock in Santa Cruz on faith. I had misspelled signs, a truck and a trailer. I went there Monday morning and sat there all day. Two people dropped off donated items. Tuesday, several more people brought items. By Wednesday, over a thousand people dropped off things and many volunteers joined in and helped organize, sort and box the collections and then load trucks and trailers. An article was written in the local paper about this grassroots effort to help the Katrina storm survivors. My vision was to load up one truck and trailer and make one trip. But by Friday, we had 5 trucks and 5 trailers filled with over $100,000 worth of goods donated by the Santa Cruz County residents. Nine volunteers went with me driving across the country to Louisiana. I didn’t know the folks who accompanied me. After I returned to Santa Cruz, I learned that among my helpers had been two alcoholics, a drug abuser, a gang member and a divorcee. Some how the trip had been transformative for them. A year later, the alcoholic approached me and told me he hadn’t taken a drink in a year, was attending AA meetings and had returned to his wife and kids. The next day he brought the second alcoholic to meet me. He was in recovery too. I didn’t recognize him. With a shave, a haircut, new clothes and a good diet he was transformed. xxx I also know the gang member, for the last two years, has been attending Cabrillo College and loving it. The drug addict is in a recovery program. The divorcee went back to his wife, is holding down a good job and doing well. His wife said to me with teary eyes, “Thank you”. Since the first caravan, over the past 3 years, I have dedicated my life to helping people in distress in Louisiana, Santa Cruz County and Watsonville. In 2006, with the help of volunteers, Follow Your Heart wrapped 500 presents and took them to the children of Louisiana. Last year, 500 presents went to the migrant worker here in Watsonville, CA. I , with the help of generous volunteers, have made twelve more trips to Louisiana. A total of 30 trucks and trailers have carried donated items from Santa Cruz County to Katrina survivors.