Katrina Home Bush Visited Still Stands Emptyby David Greene
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President Bush smiles alongside Ethel Williams during a visit in April to her hurricane-damaged home in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Volunteers helped tear out damaged walls and floors that day, but little rebuilding work has occurred since.
Williams has owned her house on Pauline Street since 1965. Today, it still lacks walls and ceilings. The only room that's easily identifiable is the bathroom, because the toilet and bath tub are still sitting there. All Things Considered, August 16, 2006 · In the archives of the White House Web site is an item from April 27 headlined: "President Visits Damaged Home in New Orleans, Louisiana." The pictures show President Bush with 74-year-old Ethel Williams.
"We've got a strategy to help the good folks down here rebuild," the president said that day. "Part of it has to do with funding; part of it has to do with housing; and a lot of it has to do with encouraging volunteers from around the United States to come down and help people like Mrs. Williams. So we're proud to be here with you, Mrs. Williams, and God bless you."
That was a big day for Williams. Volunteers from Catholic Charities showed up in the morning and cleared out her house. Everything was taken, even the walls and the flooring. Then, with just a half-hour of warning, the president of the United States arrived.
But since that day, not much has happened. Williams' house has stood gutted, just as it was when the president left.
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