Shoe Drop: Day 4

Today was the final day of the Shoe Drop. We drove along the coast to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. I saw more devastation today than any other. I thought it was difficult yesterday... Driving up the coast we saw so many concrete foundation pads with nothing built up around it, or stairs leading to nowhere because the house has destroyed by hurricanes. It was eerie to see dock after dock leading into the gulf with nothing behind it and no boats or anything anywhere. I also saw a boat in the grass right next to the highway, no real water in sight, that was a surreal sight.

I was part of a group that went to Third Street Elementary, a school that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and is now set up in trailers on the old property. In the picture below, you can see that they painted it up to make it a little "home-y-er" for the students. The school runs from kindergarten through second grade; the students have a pretty strict dress code/school uniform that they are supposed to adhere to also. Please note: my camera died after we hung out with the first group of kids, it was a bummer, but oh well, I still got some pictures for you!



Our set-up today was different, we were in a classroom, as opposed to the cafeteria or gym, as we have been. We ended up fitting the kids outside on the boardwalk and then sent them into the classroom we had set up to decorate!






I met some really cool first grade kids this morning... They got a huge kick out of designing their own shoes! Rashad, Johnathan, Christopher, and Gabriele were all in the same class, this was also something new. Previously the students came by grade, today they came class-by-class, two classes at a time, it made it easier to see who was in the same class and also easier for the students to be with their friends.




Ralphie even poked his head out for the fun today... It was too much to resist!



This week has been absolutely amazing! I have learned so much about myself and the needs of our country. I am looking forward to the next few days and weeks as I process this trip. I'll post some thoughts on all of it very soon... But for now it's bed time! It's 10:10 PM in Gulfport and I'm leaving the hotel at 4:45 AM! GOODNIGHT and see you soon!