I was living in White Stone, Virginia during the passing of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. I was born and raised in Lafayette, La where my family has always resided. I did not own a television at the time and, though I knew a hurricane was coming I did not realize its severity until I received a phone call from my mother the morning of August 29, 2005. I clearly remember driving over the Rappahannock River and my heart falling into my stomach upon hearing the panic and fear in my mother\'s voice as she relayed the news of the storm\'s arrival. I begged them to evacuate but they stubbornly refused. Fortunately, only our property suffered.\r\n As I prepared the bar in which I worked for opening on Tuesday, August 30 I watched the t.v. coverage of Hurricane Katrina, my heart breaking with every passing moment. Myself and the other bartender decided to donate all our tips that evening to the suffering people of the place I love most, my home in South Louisiana. \r\n The bar opened and the regulars I\'d served everyday for over a year began to pour in and a busy night of slinging drinks commenced as usual. Taped to our tip jars were signs informing everyone of our efforts to support the people of South Louisiana of which all knew I proudly claimed as my home. \r\n As the television displayed image after image of the ungodly devastation and its torture of the hearts and minds of the people in its it path, I was forced to endure the blatant and disgusting racism spewing from the mouths of the people crowded around the bar. Usually it would have been a very lucrative night, but as my customers \"weren\'t about to give their hard earned money to those n*******!\" and as they believed \"it was God\'s way of punishing them\" we had practically nothing to donate. It was surreal...\r\n In less than a year I moved to New Orleans from an overwhelming desire to be part of the community that refused to let their city drown!