There is quite a distance between East Lansing and New Orleans, but that hasn’t stopped me from visiting. I went on a family vacation to the city in seventh grade, well before Katrina.

That trip has recently drawn me back to help in the disaster relief efforts; for the past two years, I have gone with the Alternative Spring Break program to volunteer my time for a week. Each year has been an overall great experience, but both trips were drastically different.

Last year, almost three years after the storm, I saw a New Orleans that was struggling to stand back up on its feet. The downtown area had bounced back fine — it was still filled with a rich culture of Creole food and jazz music — but if you traveled just 40 minutes outside of the city to St. Bernard’s Parish, the scenery took a turn for the worse.

I will never forget the eerie feeling that crept over me as we walked through the Ninth Ward, the area hit worst by the floodwaters. It was a ghost town. Blocks of abandoned houses were left untouched, people’s things were lying in the streets. Other houses were completely gone, with only their foundations remaining.

I could count on one hand how many people had come back to rebuild their houses. It was very hard to see and take in all at once.

When I came back this year, I didn’t really know what to expect. I was excited to see life creeping back slowly but surely into the area. People had started to rebuild and there was a sense of spirit in the air. It was extremely uplifting to see positive change in a place that had seen so much hardship.

One evening when our group was walking around the Ninth Ward, we came across a man who was living in a trailer next to his new home, which was being built by Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation. We stopped to talk to him, and he opened up his home and his life to us. It took me by surprise. He had lost everything, from his home to his family, but here he was, talking to us strangers. He thanked us for being there helping, saying that all the rebuilding was being done by volunteers, with very little help from the government. He also had a sign in his front yard that read, “We want our country to love us as much as we love our country.” This man really opened my eyes to how important it is to live selflessly and to never stop giving back to those in need in our country, not only in New Orleans.

Two people I went with this year, who live near Detroit, also made a comment that has really stuck with me. Despite my positive views, they were shocked at how much the area reminded them of parts of Detroit. They went on to say they were glad to be helping in New Orleans, but it took them 1,078 miles to see that they should be helping out close to home, too.

I came to the realization that we should be conscious of what our nation is going through, as well as what is happening around the corner. Even though we all have busy lives, it doesn’t take much to give back and to create a bond with your community. There are plenty of ways to volunteer in East Lansing and Lansing. The Center for Service-Learning and Civil Engagement can help you find volunteer opportunities on their Web site. There also is the MSU Student Food Bank, as well as Habitat for Humanity or the Capitol Area United Way. This is just a short list of the organizations you can work with.

It doesn’t take much to make a difference in someone’s life, whether it be here in East Lansing, in your hometown or all the way down in New Orleans.

Lauren Wood is a State News guest columnist and journalism sophomore. Reach her at woodlau2@msu.edu.