Rebirth on Bayou Liberty

Almost seven years after it was swamped by Katrina, St. Genevieve Catholic Church on Bayou Liberty has been rebuilt. I pass the church on my daily commute, so I watched in January 2007 as they demolished the old church , built in 1958. I have followed and chronicled her rebirth for the past five years .

On January 15, 2012 St. Genevieve opened to her parishoners. It was a beautiful thing to witness.

This is what she looked like before Katrina

During the groundbreaking in October of 2010, parishioners were asked to place a small amount of dirt from their home into the groundbreaking hole in celebration of their unity.

The doors to the church were donated by Dr. John Breaux and were produced in Honduras. They depict the history of the parish from the time it was a mission until the present new church.

In 1852, a brick chapel was built by Mrs. Anatole Cousin on land she donated.

In 1914, Father Francis Balay renovated the old church and rededicated it

In 1950s another Bayou Liberty Church - St. Linus - was merged with St. Genevieve

In 1958, a new church building was built and dedicated Dec. 28 by Reverend Joseph Rummel.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina destroyed the church. Immediately following the storm, Mass was celebrated under an oak tree for several weeks and then in the parish hall.

In 2011, the new church was completed!

 

From watching this steeple lying on the ground during deconstruction of the old church,

 

It was such a good feeling to see the old steeple rising toward the heavens again

The original stained glass windows are used in the new church (photo by Slidell Sentry News)

The altar looks out over Bayou Liberty

The old Chapel is shown here after the church was razed

And now the Chapel is once again united with the church

After Katrina, St. Genevieve's pastor is quoted as saying: "The church is not the building, but the people, we are the church."
~ Reverend Roel Lungay

I salute the strength and faith parishioners of St. Genevieve and congratulate them on this long-time coming occasion.

A Wet Labor Day Weekend

September is the high point on the tropical activity calendar. We who live on the Gulf Coast accept the fact that our Labor Day weekends might possibly be hampered by tropical activity. And this year we have Tropical Storm Lee.

What follows are my pix taken on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain (approximately 30 miles away from the French Quarter). The pictures are not as sensational as the Weather Channel would have you believe about Lee's intensity. Lee is more of a slow moving storm than a powerful one. As I type this (Sunday at 8 AM) it's still pouring outside.



This was taken from Lakeview Drive, better known as Rats Nest Road in Slidell. The old piers destroyed by Katrina are in the foreground and the new Twin Spans can be seen in the background.


This train was moving slowly across the submerged marshland heading towards Lake Pontchartrain.


Six years Post Katrina, St. Genevieve Catholic Church in the Bayou Liberty area of Slidell (my neighborhood) is finally rebuilding.



I like this shot of the crosses of the chapel and church.


Bayou Liberty boat berths. Those poles in the foreground represent sunken boat slips.





Swings and benches submerged in Lee's flood waters.


This is what this area normally looks like.


Hubby pointed out the beauty of the Spanish Moss and the waters of Bayou Liberty.


This crazy truck driver drove through the flood waters to drop off a friend.



The "new" Bayou Liberty Bridge taken from the Church side of the Bayou.





A view of the piers on the St. Genevieve grounds.



A bright spot in all of this wet windy weather is that our 6 month old lab discovered how much he LOVES water!