I was born and raised in the Buccaneer Villa North subdivision in Chalmette. I moved to Dallas, TX because I lost everything from Hurricane Katrina. My mom bought a house here in Dallas and my husband and I moved in with her because she is a Diabetic. She moved here so she could continue working. During the evacuation for Katrina my dad passed away in his sleep because the hurricane destroyed everything. My sister was stuck in a downtown New Orleans hotel during the storm and the violence. Thankfully she made it through. Hurricane Katrina has been a tremendous strain on my life and I continue to try to put it behind me. It has been such a struggle for almost 3 years. When I went back home after Katrina that I was so traumatized that I chose to not remember much of those 6 months there. I would always go to my house just so I could get disgusted and angry. I think at the time I was trying to make it real for me. I didn't realize that until I moved. Right before I moved my house was demolished. Even though I wish my Dad was alive today, I am glad he didn't get to see his home. The really upsetting part is that my neighborhood continues to look like a ghost town. It is almost completely empty and is unrecognizable. That how it was in January 2008. My mom continues to fight with the LA Road Home Program because they under appraised her house. Katrina didn't just take my house. She took my home, my childhood, and my mental state. The person I used to be was lost along with everything else. Today I treasure what little things we saved from my house, mostly knickknacks, but they are very important to me. I am 35 years old and I have been married for 10 years (my maiden name is Kondroik) and have a black Labrador named Ripley who is 5 years old. I also have eight tattoos which I got after the hurricane.