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"It's like the house was picked up, shook, had water added and left to rot for seven weeks," said Erin Craig about just one home she saw in Biloxi, Miss., last week.
Craig, along with 18 other Grace College students and four Grace staff members, joined Huntington College students helping Mississippians pick up the pieces.
"We moved one mess from one place to another," said Megan Jennie of her four days down South.
The young adults, sponsored by the Hope Crisis Network in Elkhart, stayed in Gautier, Miss., in the Crossroads Nazarene Church last week. They were bussed to Biloxi each day forming work crews in residential areas.
Debris had to be placed within 10 feet of the streets to be removed later this month.
Working in 85-degree temperatures on ground still wet from the tide sent by Hurricane Katrina, mold started growing on their shoes within two days. A pervasive odor of rot, sometimes accompanied by the stank of death, filled the air.
It wasn't like even being in the United States they said. If it weren't for the U.S. flags and English language, they would have sworn they were somewhere else.
"I've traveled to other countries," said Scott Feather, head of Grace's Center for Character and Leadership Development. "The sights and smells there are like what I've seen and smelled in places like Manila where people live in trash dumps."
"There are piles of rubble where houses stood," said Stephanie Flora. "People pick through these piles trying to find their things.
"I'll never forget the man who sat in a lawn chair in his driveway. He was in his 60s. His wife was going through the debris where their house was."
Some residents found they had new additions to their property like entire houses they'd never seen before.
Houses on steel pilings were blown to ground level because the enormous waves caused by Hurricane Katrina swept the supports out from under them.
One man's 7,800-square-foot house was reduced to an office chair and a barbecue grill.
"Once you come back, things start to sink in," said Kaitlyn Northeimer. "You realize people were saying 'My house is gone.' Or 'I hung onto the rafters for hours.' Or 'My family is gone.' And they had no expression on their faces while they were saying these things."
Northeimer used a garden rake one day to clear the muck out of a woman's bathroom. All of the woman's books and magazines had collected there and rotted in the mud and slime.
The students heard stories from people telling how they saw people hanging from light poles during the storm. They heard about two women deciding to leave their roof to swim 50 feet to the higher community center rooftop. It took them three hours to swim to safety.
"There were very few people living in the area," said Matt Smith, and those that did had nothing. "No one expected this. They said would stay during a category one or two hurricane. They would pack and move out for four days for a category three or four hurricane.
"This time there was nothing to come back to and all they had of their own is four day's worth of clothes."
Anyone with things in storage soon realized the storage units had been under water, too.
"There was so much water and wind damage," said Sarah Dompier of the disaster site. "There's nothing that hasn't been touched.
"We were in a work mode there. Nothing seems to shock you. Then, you return to what seems like a pristine campus where there's no trash, running water, where the air smells good.
"There are piles of debris everywhere on the coast. Nothing is good. Nothing is left. And what's left is mold-covered and stinks."
Electrical power hasn't been restored to the area. There's no water or sewer service. Small trailers, many of them manufactured in Goshen or Elkhart, are gradually being added as shelter. But no one can move in to these tiny units have electricity.
Some commercial life is returning to the area and every business posted signs saying they were hiring.
"We saw a lot of tent cities. People living under tarps supported by poles," said Crystal Ludwig.
Everywhere message boards are covered with pictures of missing people or posters asking for information about a missing person.
Two of the students saw one bird during their four days there - a cardinal. All other birds have fled the area. But there were butterflies by the thousands.
Back on campus they opened backpacks to wash the items inside and be assaulted by the horrible smell again.
"I just threw my shoes away," Jennie said, adding that if her tuition hadn't been paid this semester she would still be in Mississippi helping. She plans to return in December.
No one came back unchanged. It's taking a while for the group to settle back into classes and their "normal" routine.
"Because of the images that are constantly in my head, I keep expecting people to talk about it, to ask about it," Ludwig said.
"The purpose is clear there," Craig said. "It feels wrong to be here when there are people down there who need help. I'll go down as often as I can, as long as I can until its cleaned up."
