Audrey's Journey When it was all over, she realized it was just beginning. Raritan, N. J., State Farm Agent Audrey Jankucic, Beta Psi, returned home after nine days traveling to the Mississippi coast and realized after this life altering experience that her work, and the work of many others, had only just begun. "The trip is over, but for so many the task is just beginning," says Audrey. After Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, obliterating the Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana coastlines, Audrey was unsettled, like most of us, because this hurricane recalled the losses she had experienced as result of flooding in 1999 with Hurricane Floyd. As a State Farm agent, Audrey and other agents spent their days assisting their policyholders, while trying to deal with their own personal devastation. Audrey felt compelled to go to this newly impacted area. She needed to help.

Audrey Jankucic, Beta Psi, (left) and Shannon Snow, Zeta Gamma, share a Phi Mu moment at a recent meeting of the Princeton Alumnae Chapter in New Jersey.

Another sister who helped, Karen Eggert, Phi Gamma, was the Public Information Officer for the Louisiana Animal Rescue and Recovery Incident Command Center. She coordinated outreach efforts and handled media requests. Her biggest job was coordinating the public outreach to return rescued horses to their owners. Karen works for the USDA. Find out how you can help... click here.

Reaching Out to Those Reaching Back With the assistance of Agent Ed Mahn and his daughter, Fire Claim Rep Susan Mahn, and many agents and regional associates, who donated money and items to the effort, Audrey was able to take an impromptu trip to Mississippi. Transporting a U-Haul filled with supplies and Wal-Mart gift cards. She began a unique odyssey. Along the way, Audrey was buoyed by the generosity of her Phi Mu Sisters who lifted her spirits, opened their homes to her, and kept her fed. Three Sisters in particular worked closely with Audrey, as she made her way along the Gulf Coast. "Cathy Sessums, Kappa Epsilon, graciously allowed me to stay in her very palatial home in Hattiesburg," she says. "This meant that I could travel back to Bay St. Louis to distribute more supplies, where those people needed everything. "Shellye McCarty, Alpha Delta, and my Phi Mu Big Sister, Heidi White Kallio, Beta Psi, also opened their homes to me and fed me at one time or another during my trip," Audrey says.

"Many other sisters nationally helped me via e-mail as I wound my way down through the Alabama and Mississippi coast. They helped me find my way and gave me strength when I was tired and discouraged. They inspired me!

"I began full of hope and excitement," she recalls. "As the trip progressed, my mind struggled with the enormity of the devastation I came to observe, and how different it was from the way I had envisioned it. Upon seeing the devastation, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of helplessness and sorrow for our friends, our nation, and especially my Sisters in Phi Mu. So many Sisters suffered enormous losses as a result of this catastrophic event," she says.

"I met up with Stacy Garcia, Alpha Omicron. Stacy and her family lost everything in Hurricane Katrina. I gave her a few things," says Audrey. "Since that time, Stacy has received money from Phi Mu's Heart and Hand Fund. This is made possible by the generosity of Sisters who give back constantly as a way of enabling relief efforts when disaster strikes. The family has registered for a FEMA trailer, but are not certain when or if that will happen. Meanwhile, she and her husband continue working to restore normalcy," she says. "Stacy was overwhelmed by the love of her Phi Mu Sisters. She feels this embrace is what brought her through her trials. Shellye McCarty donated items to help the family and enable Stacy to return to her teaching job with the appropriate clothes. Now, when I talk with Stacy, I realize we made a difference in helping this family start on the road to recovery."

A Journey of Self-Discovery

"If you want to lead an effort, you may need to learn how to follow. If you want to follow, you may need to overcome your fear and learn how to lead. If you have no money to give, you may need to be creative and find a way to raise funds to help others," Audrey says. "If you feel you have too many problems of your own, you may need to find perspective and set aside one or two things in order to find the time and concentration to help.

"When I finished my first two days traveling, I was filled with excitement and delight at the beauty of the countryside. I enjoyed XM radio and marveled at such things as the Fireworks Super Store. But, as I neared my ultimate destination, my outlook began to change.

"When I hit Interstate 10, the hurricane damage began to creep up on me as I drove west. First, the billboards and tress, then roofs were damaged, next roofs were gone…when I hit the bridge in Mississippi, part of the eastbound flow and been chewed up and spit out. I knew that if a storm could do this much damage to concrete and iron girders, what I was about to come upon in Bay St. Louis/Waveland was going to be difficult," she says.

"I was given directions to take a left to get to the Red Cross shelter at the high school, but I think I was supposed to turn off before the beach. I did not do that and what met my eyes was shocking. When the road ended, I was on another planet. Mattresses in trees, foundations of homes with no home on top, from every vantage point there were parts of peoples lives strewn all over the sand. Military personnel were patrolling the area and the electric companies were scrambling to restring wires for power to homes no longer there."

Struck by the utter nothingness near the shore, Audrey realized the complete power of the killer storm. Katrina with her 100 plus tornadoes, wrecked total havoc... In places like Diamondhead and Waveland, there was a fifty foot wall of water on top of the storm surge. Equating it to a tsunami, she understood the reason people and things are just gone, swept to sea, to never be seen again.

For Audrey, everything changed with that wrong turn. She got it, now. She soon discovered that many residents were now living in Wal-Mart and K-mart parking lots.

Helping to process insurance claims, as well as disbursing the relief items she had brought in the U-Haul, Audrey found herself working in the "tent" area where claims did the insurance equivalent of "triage." Here claim representatives and agents sorted out the worst cases from the light claims. Audrey provided support by answering questions and trying to help people piece together what was left of their lives.

"I asked people questions about their lives, about their homes, pets, and hurricane experiences. While the general themes were similar, the details began to weave a tapestry unique to each individual. I have created a patchwork quilt in my memory of these people and their life-changing experiences."

But through her long journey, Audrey was never alone. Her husband's love was with her every minute and every mile, her State Farm family, and her Sisters in Phi Mu did all they could to lend their support, as well. Audrey had gone to the Gulf Coast on a single journey, and came back with a mission of help and hope for others.

"For those wanting to place blame at one level or another, the point is being missed. It is not the local, state or federal government that will bring these people back. It's the love of neighbors and friends, the kindness of strangers and the good will of the American people that will make this right. Because you see this is not about beaurocracy and beaurocrats. This is about the human need to love and be loved and cared for in return. The only thing that will heal these wounds is time and love and the efforts of others to help them build a new life."

As a result of her experience, Audrey plans to continue to pursue ways she can assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Realizing that some will not be covered for the flood damage, she advises there are other ways to help. Animals need homes and so do people.

"I want us all to reach out and help in whatever way we can, whether we donate money, supplies, our time to build homes, or our homes for people or pets. Some of us might only be able to cheer on others, but a positive attitude is what's needed now and we need to share that whenever possible."

Since her trip and commitment to a mission of help for others, Audrey has been instrumental in promoting a new regional partnership between State Farm Insurance and Habitat for Humanity. As a result of this union, two homes are promised. One is set for the Mississippi Coast, and one locally in Morris County, which is in Audrey's home state of New Jersey. However, if the fundraising efforts go well, more homes will be built.

In addition, at the national level, State Farm has submitted a proposal to Habitat International to partner with them and assist in the construction of a number of homes, all of which would be built in the area ravaged by Hurricane Katrina.

Motivated by a desire to make a difference in the lives of those impacted by Hurricane Katrina, Audrey made her trip the week after the horrific storm. To read about the journey in more detail visit her blog at http://thekatrinaproject.blogspot.com.

Find out how you can help... click here.