LAS VEGAS-The odyssey of master painter Gerard Connor and his family as they tried to avoid the destruction of hurricanes Katrina and Rita symbolizes the effects of those disasters on millions of Americans and it provides a sharp image of those effects on technicians in the collision repair industry.
The reaction of the Collision Industry Relief Foundation to the plight of the Connors-and the thousands of other collision repair industry workers thrown out of work by those hurricanes-represents what can be done when a group of people join forces to help their friends and colleagues.
Several representatives of the hundreds of collision repair industry professionals who volunteered their time, services and money to aid people whose livelihoods were lost due to the disasters took the stage to acknowledge the efforts of the Collision Industry Foundation, during the Nov. 1 "Night of Achievement" awards ceremony at Mandalay Bay. Connor and his wife, Lisa, joined them to put a human face on the successful efforts to find employment, tools, housing and more for Katrina and Rita survivors.
Connor explained that he worked in an independent collision repair shop in New Orleans and that on Sunday at 2 a.m., when Katrina was approaching and the evacuation order came through, he loaded his family into two cars and took off for Houston and safety. He left behind several cars he was restoring, most of his family's belongings and a job at Custom Body Shop. That shop, according to Connor who saw it shortly after the storm hit, was destroyed. "It was under 20 feet of water. Only the sign was visible," says Connor.
The family briefly settled in Houston when Connor heard about the Collision Industry Relief Foundation's effort to match displaced workers with jobs in the industry. Unfortunately, his efforts to take advantage of that were disrupted by Hurricane Rita, which forced him and his family-and some 2.5 million Houston residents-to seek shelter from the storm.
Oklahoma City was the destination Connor had selected because there were rooms available there, but John Junk, an industry volunteer, and Connor's "advisor" suggested Connor head to Shreveport, La., where shelter and a possible job awaited. Hurricane Rita made a turn toward Shreveport and dashed those plans.
It also made it difficult for Junk to continue his aid. "I was calling them for four hours trying to find them and the phones were hit and miss," says Junk. That led to some difficult times for him and the Connors, but as the storm subsided, so did the problems.
Connor returned to Houston and started to put things back together. "I hit the pavement, looking for a job. It was a very scary time, a very emotionally draining time," says Connor.
Junk and the foundation soon put Connor in touch with Mossy Nissan in Houston, which gave him a job, and with Tom Moreland of Akzo Nobel, who put tools in his hands so he could do the job. "It's been a godsend. I thought it was going to be a piece of cake, but I filled out 20 applications and there was nothing until John called," says Connor.
The difficulties Junk had in connecting with Connor were similar to those of other collision industry volunteers. "These people were scattered all over the place. You had no idea where anyone was or how to get in touch with them," says Junk.
The wide range of volunteers helped to spread the word and speed the aid. The experience also helped the foundation establish the means to deal with other disasters.
"Now if there's an earthquake, a flood or some other major disaster, we're prepared," says Chuck Sulkala, executive director of the National Auto Body Council, and one of the leaders of the relief effort.
Connor and his family are rebuilding their lives in Houston, and as they told their story at the Night of Achievement, the audience knew that through the collective efforts of people throughout the collision repair industry there were thousands of other happy endings, just like the Connor's.
[Author Affiliation]
By Mark Johnson
Senior Editor
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