Hurricane Katrina: teachers helping teachers.

It's been more than seven months since the eye of Hurricane Katrina made landfall on August 29, 2005. That day, for residents in the affected areas, marked the end of the lives they had known and the beginning of a very uncertain future. With damage estimates ranging from $40 to $200 billion, Hurricane Katrina will be recorded as the most expensive natural disaster in U.S. history to date.

The headlines are no longer filled with stories of the devastation along the Gulf Coast, however the recovery is not finished. Food, water and shelter are not as scarce as they once were, but life for most has hardly returned to normal. A long period of rebuilding careers, homes and lives still stands before many.

The destruction may seem distant and hard to comprehend for many, but for MTNA members living near the coasts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana it has become an unpleasant reality. In late August, these music teachers were forced to evacuate and take shelter elsewhere as winds and floods destroyed their homes. Upon returning, many found flooded, ruined messes. Mold grew quickly in the warm humid climate and mud covered nearly everything. Others returned home to nothing.

The Need

The winds and rain brought by Hurricane Katrina played no favorites and damaged houses, schools, universities, churches and anything else in their path. MTNA members found their homes, studios, schools, instruments and music libraries destroyed. With discouraging news from insurance companies and no way of earning money by teaching music lessons, many teachers found themselves faced with a difficult future.

MTNA Members Respond

The news of the hurricane was still fresh when MTNA, the Louisiana Music Teachers Association (LMTA) and the Mississippi Music Teachers Association (MMTA) began to take action. MTNA immediately sent out a message encouraging members to contribute to the Red Cross and the Salvation Army to help provide funds for the immediate needs of those affected by the hurricane. MTNA established the Hurricane Katrina Recovery Fund to raise funds to aid teachers in the reestablishment of their studios. To date MTNA has received nearly $30,000--all of which has been evenly divided between LMTA and MMTA. Members from 44 states joined together to financially support their colleagues in need.

"We were very pleased with the overwhelming response," says MTNA Executive Director Gary L. Ingle. "The generosity of MTNA's members has touched the lives of hundreds of teachers, students and their families."

In addition to the fund, MTNA contributed $5,000 each to LMTA and MMTA to assist with their recovery efforts.

MTNA member support didn't stop with financial assistance. Members from all across the country responded to the call for music, keyboards and countless other needs. Hundreds of boxes of new and used music were shipped to Louisiana and Mississippi. Colleagues from as far away as Oregon offered free room and board for displaced university music students, and several members and local associations provided digital pianos for use in studios that were being reestablished.

More members than could be counted have assisted in some manner and each has their own meaningful story, One such story came from Debra Gamero, of Utah, who set a goal of having her students practice 500 hours between Thanksgiving and Christmas. She volunteered to make a contribution of a dollar for each hour the students practiced. "The students were thrilled with the idea and were motivated to practice at Christmas time, when I usually see very little practicing," said Gamero. Gamero's students made their goal by December 18.

In California, the Aceveda Music & Art Education Foundation held a benefit concert. This group of talented performers raised nearly $7,000 for the Hurricane Katrina Recovery Fund.

The Industry Responds

Soon after the hurricane, MTNA approached several of its corporate partners to request assistance with providing pianos for the teachers in Louisiana and Mississippi who no longer had an instrument on which to teach. The industry wasted no time in lending its support to the MTNA efforts.

Roland Corporation  U.S. donated two digital pianos for members most in need. Karen Smith of Louisiana and Peggy Peterson of Mississippi received these instruments.

Steinway & Sons announced that it would loan Steinway-designed pianos for 12 months, free of charge, to MTNA members in coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi. In addition, they would offer value certificates worth up to $1,500 toward the purchase of a new Steinway-designed piano, if a member's existing piano was destroyed.

Yamaha also answered the call and provided members with pianos, free of charge, for 12 months. At the conclusion of the instrument loan, teachers will have the option to purchase the instrument at a specified discounted rate.

The Continued Efforts

The road to recovery is still long for the many whose lives were uprooted by Hurricane Katrina. There will be numerous other needs that arise as the months pass and the rebuilding continues. MTNA, LMTA and MMTA are committed to the continued support of their members through the Hurricane Katrina Recovery Fund. Together, MTNA members can make a lasting difference in the lives of their colleagues.

Louisiana Katrina Update

By Sue Steck-Turner

When we began the hurricane relief project, we had no idea how involved and effective it would become. The response of the entire nation to our difficulties has been overwhelming. To date, the LMTA Save Our Students Fund has collected over $11,730, $5,000 of which was given to us by MTNA when we asked them to match our funds. We only recently matched their contribution, but our fund slowly continues to grow. From this fund we have subsidized tuition and piano rentals and purchased keyboards for over 70 students and several teachers. Music has been incredibly important to our students--it has offered a much needed stability to their overturned worlds--and of course our teachers cannot return to any sense of normalcy without their students.

To date we have received over $125,000 worth of music, face-value. We estimate that Alfred alone has sent over $100,000 worth of band, choral, orchestra and piano music to Louisiana for distribution. I have written donations receipts to 37 contributors from 15 different states, extending from California to Massachusetts, Wisconsin to Florida, and this does not include five major collections that did not require receipts. My daughter's room is filled with music, our living room has 10 boxes I have not yet opened and inventoried, and I just learned last week that 33 boxes are on their way from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Music has been shuttled from Lafayette to needy teachers by anyone I could find passing through Lafayette to New Orleans. It has been exchanged in parking lots, along highway exits, homes and music stores, to be shuttled by teachers, students and even husbands. The spirit of cooperation has been incredible. We have even shipped band music from California to a high school in New Orleans and shuttled music education materials to an elementary school in Slidell.

We have been given three Roland digital pianos, approximately 20 keyboards from Yamaha and six keyboards from the Schubert Club in Fairfield, Connecticut. The Los Angeles Branch of MTAC raised $850 to help us purchase a Roland that was being sold in Baton Rouge. This piano was to go to a needy student, but when she was able to reclaim her keyboard, the Roland was given to a displaced teacher who taught and provided a practice situation for five displaced students. All of this came together in three days--it was a match made in heaven! Another heavenly match was a Roland donated by Sarah Crouch of the Dallas area. She contacted me to arrange shipping, but it was never shipped. The piano ended up with one of our displaced teachers whose apartment was across the street from where Sarah's husband worked. The piano was exactly what this teacher had been wishing for and was an incredible emotional perk to his desperate situation at the time.

I have made Internet friends all over the nation--many of whom I hope to meet face-to-face in Austin [at the MTNA National Conference]. Two of the most interesting e-mail contacts I have had have been with two producers for ABC TV's Extreme Makeover, providing information for locations and musicians to be featured on future shows. I never would have thought that I would serve in such an advisory capacity!

Our teachers are most grateful for LMTA's portion of the MTNA Katrina Fund. We gave 10 teachers, whom we considered to be the neediest, checks for $1,250. Six of them attended the C.U.R.E. Party [Celebrate, Updates, Reunite, Enjoy) on January 21, 2006, organized by the Baton Rouge MTA--the others currently are being displaced or relocated. The party provided a forum for the association to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the New Orleans MTA and the survival of the LMTA members, in addition to providing an opportunity for the association to recognize its award recipients. Tears and hugs were incredibly bountiful. Many remarked that their losses are so great that any amount of money, is a tremendous help--but most of all, it is not just the money but the knowledge that they have emotional support from their colleagues--someone to turn to, someone who cares about them--that is what keeps them going. Our teachers are surviving and trying to move forward, but life is difficult. The distress and hardship they have experienced shows in their faces and their demeanor. Only two of the six at the party have returned to their homes, and they can inhabit only a small portion of their dwellings. The others are in rentals or FEMA trailers. Repairs are progressing very slowly as there is a serious lack of construction workers and fees are exhorbitant. Recovery is going to be long-term. We remain concerned that we have not been able to contact about 25 of our members who were in the Katrina areas--many of them have just disappeared.

This hurricane relief endeavor has been the most gratifying project for which I have ever worked. The generosity and concern of the contributors and the devastation and gratitude of the victims has been overwhelming. It--and the grace of God--is truly what has kept me going on four to five hours of sleep, week after week since August 28.

If members should ask what we need, it is money. We do not need any more music--we have an over-supply at this time. Music lessons have become an unaffordable luxury for many of our students, and our teachers cannot function without students. Subsidizing tuition for students serves a dual purpose and keeps music alive for all of us. Life will never be the same for any of us, but with the support of our colleagues, we continue to move forward one step at a time.

Mississippi Katrina Update

By Joanna Burnside

Several music teachers in Mississippi had their lives forever changed because of severe damage to homes and businesses caused by Hurricane Katrina. All across south Mississippi, MTNA members suffered tremendous loss of property, but none as much as some members of the Gulf Coast Music Teachers Association. They lived in areas where a tremendous storm surge destroyed everything. These areas were not in flood zones, and many were 20-30 feet above sea level, nevertheless, most insurance companies are denying their claims. It will be a long and difficult road to recovery for these teachers, some of whom are still living in RVs or with nearby relatives.

The response to Mississippi's plea for help following the devastation has been magnificent. With invaluable help from the MTNA membership and staff, remarkable contributions have been made. Through MTNA's website, e-mails and phone calls, members from all over the country have generously donated to help these independent teachers replenish their music studios and livelihoods. Many students who study with these teachers also lost everything; many of the donations have been shared with them.

An enormous amount of music and other teaching supplies has been shipped from all over the country the past five months. We received more than ever anticipated! Monetary donations have been exceptional. Through these generous donations, the Mississippi Music Teachers Association (MMTA) has been able to distribute more than $2,000 to each teacher on the list of teachers in need compiled by the MMTA leadership. A guitar, three keyboards and two pianos have also been donated.

Thank You

To hear and see how thankful each of these teachers is for the generosity of their colleagues is amazing. Just a few of the grateful responses are included below:

"Thank you for bringing us all the wonderful boxes of music, plus that very generous check. We have all the teachers in our state and in MTNA to thank for their kindness and generosity. It has been a traumatic happening for us on the coast, but the love and kindness of all our friends in the musical family has made it easier to bear."

"Were it not for your reaching out for us, the sadness of this tragedy would be far greater."

"Your caring has inspired everyone and helps give us the motivation to continue under these trying conditions. Thank you and may God bless you and all who have made these girls possible."

"I have been returning tuition to clients who pre-paid for the first semester [of music lessons]. Writing these checks was difficult, we have so many expenses right now. The 'Katrina Relief' check was most welcome, and most sincerely appreciated. Thanks to all the members who contributed."

"Thank you for everything. I do not know what I would have done without you."

"I've always felt music teachers have strong bonds that, even when you meet another teacher from other states, you feel a closeness--a common bond in our lives. I really appreciate your interest in our recovery and care for our local teachers."

"Please tell everyone who has helped the music teachers--THANK YOU! Yesterday, the carpet installers came in to put the carpet down--this should help the students get to feel like things are getting back to normal. My students enjoyed looking through the music and picked out what they wanted to learn."

"Enclosed is a picture of my piano, which stood in a storm surge for several hours. The soft pedal does not work and the keys keep falling off. Thank you for any assistance, it will be greatly appreciated." (This MMTA member received one of the donated Roland digital pianos).

"It is a comfort just to touch the [music] books. The second check has taken my breath away."

The Donations

MMTA has received well over 225 boxes of music and other teaching items from around the country. Mississippi teachers Janice Mesrobian, Pat Tuley and I have spent several days over the past five months organizing boxed donations by composer, method, level and multiple other categories. Donations came from all over the country. Some boxes were small. Some were gigantic. Sorting through it has been a fascinating and educational experience. Many people and associations generously sent multiple boxes. One young man made Mississippi his Bar Mitzvah project and sent a tremendous amount of boxes, full of wonderful donations to help teachers recover. Many of the donations came with touching notes and e-mails from MTNA membership, who have shown great compassion.

These donations have been equally divided among the teachers, according to levels taught, methods preferred and specific requests. One wonderful MTNA member asked if there had been any specific requests from teachers. I told her about a request by one teacher for a collection called 59 Piano Solos You Like to Play. She told me she had it, and would ship it. Later, it turned out she didn't have the right book after all, but she was determined to find one and eventually did. She put a note on the book saying that it was especially for that teacher. I can't tell you how touching it was to be able to deliver a replacement for that particular book.

Multiple boxes for each teacher were packed, and delivery of donations provided an opportunity to make personal contact with each teacher. It is difficult to describe what they have each been going through and what is ahead. They all have unique stories to share.

This was not an expected project, but it has enabled us to see a side of people we never thought we would. It is refreshing to see inherent goodness in people, as exhibited by each contributor. MMTA is proud to be an affiliate of such a caring organization. The teachers receiving donations are very grateful. Although their lives will never be the same, and they have many obstacles to overcome, your donations have had very special meaning.

Ten independent music teachers from Mississippi lost studios, music, instruments and much more due to the devastation. Though they lost everything and are having a very difficult time, several are teaching again, despite the hardships of recovery. Their homes were flooded and their studios and instruments destroyed. All the music they had collected over their years of teaching has been ruined by water, mud and mold. However, the generous donations from MTNA, its membership, associations and individuals, have helped on the road to recovery.