TPSO smashes brick-wall drug burglary ring
December 30, 2015
5 in custody were planning additional crimes
December 30, 2015
In a modest east Houma ranch-style home last week, the Rev. Mike Tran of Annunziata Catholic Church read aloud from a prayer book, and dispersed holy water in the kitchen, during a celebration of prayers that were answered for a family that has had more than their share of illness and setbacks.
It was a group that helped them to help others in prior times of need that coordinated the help that made a difference for Mike and Lora Songe, and during the small gathering that the priest attended there were smiles and even a few tears.
The Songes, who helped others rebuild after devastating hurricanes, were themselves victimized by a domino-like series of events that began with damage from Hurricane Isaac in 2012.
For years before that Mike, a licensed electrician, coordinated with the Terrebonne Readiness and Assistance Coalition, a local non-profit that works with other groups like Catholic Charities to identify and render assistance to those whose needs are not met by FEMA, other federal agencies or insurance payouts.
Rob Gorman, a TRAC board member and director of Catholic Charities for the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, said that Mike took on jobs at highly reduced rates or in many cases for no compensation at all, when informed by the organization of needful families.
“He believes in helping our community build back better after a storm,” Gorman said, recalling the gratis work Mike did after storms like Katrina, Rita and Gustav.
But after Hurricane Isaac struck Houma and surrounding communities in 2012, it was Mike who needed help.
The Songe’s roof was severely damaged by Isaac, and he repaired it using money from an insurance claim. But the fix didn’t hold, and soon the Songes were routinely using buckets to catch water in their bedroom, a scenario that turned even minor rain events into severe challenges. Damage to ceilings developed into more damage in the walls, and mold spread throughout the modest east Houma dwelling.
In remission from bladder cancer when the storm hit, Mike learned in the midst of the turmoil that it had returned. Sidelined with the effects of radiation and chemotherapy, he was resigned to what became an unmanageable state of affairs. But he never approached the people who had helped him help others for help.
“I wanted to see what other avenues I could go through,” Mike later explained, sensitive to the potential that others were in worse straits than himself.
It was when a TRAC representative called to ask for help with another family’s problems that Mike let his situation be known. The organization immediately helped him with paperwork for a federal loan, which was denied. Then TRAC coordinated a visit from a roofer and other contractors who got to work, knowing that Mike was in a dire situation.
“They did a wonderful job,” said Mike, whose illness is now being managed with medication, and who is doing electrical work.
Last week, in a home now fully repaired, Mike and Lora offered prayers of thanks during the blessing.
“It was very important,” he said of the help TRAC put together. “It was priceless.”
But Gorman, who attended the blessing, said the ability of TRAC to do future good work is in severe jeopardy.
“Without the TRAC and Catholic Charities partnership this recovery story could not have happened,” Gorman said. “We have, fortunately, gone so many years without a major hurricane that we tend to forget about preparedness and those families still trying to recover from hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav, Ike and Isaac and the BP Oil Spill.” •
