Both my brothers and dad work for power companies. And all three of them are highly favored amongst the companies they work for. My brother, Kevin, works for Entergy in New Orleans. This is a letter about him that was sent to his boss after Hurricane Isaac.
Dear Mr. Lawler,
During the chaos of Hurricane Isaac, one man stood out amongst all others who were called to duty during the aftermath of the storm. For five days, my family was without power. We ran out of food. The mold from the water that made it into the house forced us to sleep outside each night. Each day an Entergy team would toy with our transformer, then leave us hungry, hot, and in the pitch dark. They wore sunglasses and pretended the citizens that were crying for help around them were invisible. Then came day five. My neighborhood was busting at the seams with frustration, broken spirits, and lack of morale. Those who had the resources, had already fled the area. I could not leave. In bustling Uptown New Orleans, I do not have a car. Plus, I care for the sick and elderly 87 year old lady next door.
On day five at 7:30 in the morning an Entergy truck pulled up across the street. I explained to the gentleman that the night before a team had fixed our transformer and said it would "light up" in a few hours. This gentleman, without sunglasses, listened to my story, looked into my eyes from across the street, and with a confidence that gave me my first scrap of hope since the storm, he shouted, "That should have been done. I can't fix your problem now because I am working on this pole. However, YOU WILL HAVE POWER BY THE END OF THE DAY!" With two outstretched arms pointed towards me he said, "YOU CAN TELL ANYONE KEVIN JONES SAID SO!" I immediately reported back to my 87 year old neighbor the good news. We didn't really think we would ever see Kevin Jones again.
At around dusk, my elderly neighbor began fading in and out in the heat. She would pray, begin fainting, sing a spiritual hymnal then hunch forward some more. In the midst of what was the last day of doomsday, I heard gravel popping from a car tire. It was Kevin Jones from Entergy. After checking in on us as human beings, he immediately called out the crews and got the orders to get power up and running. He did more in 15 minutes by combining his personal conviction with his maps, cell phones, and radio than anyone else did all week. He was confident, competent, in control, and possessed an aggressive demeanor about the disaster. He was calling shots, making demands on the radio, and troubleshooting during the last minutes as the sun was setting by jumping in his own vehicle without a crew to find the problems down the road. Kevin Jones returned to the site of my home as the last slice of sun went under. The lights came on and the whole block began crying, dancing in the streets, and thanking Jesus. Of course, Kevin Jones didn't just light up my block. He lit up the rest of Annunciation Street and who knows how many thousands of houses.
Obviously, this stranger who saved the day has a skill-set beyond what I had seen all week. However, it was his determination to help people that mattered. You must understand. We had not seen a police car, fire truck, a National Guard unit, or Red Cross helper--no one, but suffering neighbors. Entergy was the only sign of hope in a broken infrastructure where there is no distribution of physical or emotional help (no food, no one checking in, no one saying "things will be okay"). It is important that every Entergy worker realize that they represent the government, the volunteers, and the hope of a city when they roll during a disaster.
Kevin Jones was compassionate when my 87 year old neighbor cried to him and said that her blood pressure medicine hadn't been refrigerated in days. He offered more than electricity. He offered hope. I don't know Kevin Jones, but I will never forget his name and how he sat on my stoop with my neighbors and listened to them cry, vent, and talk. He answered their questions, treated us like human beings and saved us in a horrible disaster. He made it happen. I hope Kevin Jones is recognized for his valor during the disaster caused by Hurricane Isaac. Thank you for taking the time to listen to my story.
I am one PROUD sister!!
