My name is Aaron Heinsman and I'm a professional fundraiser for an educational nonprofit in Baltimore.

My dear friend Tracey Louis, who I've know for 15 years, lives in Baton Rouge. Her family was deeply affected by the recent flooding. Her father, her mother, and her sister and brother-in-law all essentially lost their homes. I'm raising money to help take some of the immense pressure and worry they're feeling off of their spirits while they try to heal and get back to some normalcy.

Based on a contractor's estimate of material and labor costs, Tracey and her family expect to pay a minimum of $50k each to make their homes habitable again (drywall, insulation, flooring, cabinets, electrical wiring, etc.). This does not include replacement of furnishings or the cost of temporary housing. Not to mention clothing or household goods or the cost of rental cars.

How much can we help them? I'm hoping we can hit a starting goal of $20,000. Any amount will make an impact. Please consider sharing, too, with your family and friends, neighbors and colleagues.

Now, Tracey's story, in her own words:

It began to rain on Thursday, August 11, 2016, and it didn’t stop. By 6 a.m. two days later, the flooding had begun.

Only two weeks earlier I had been in a serious car accident caused by a man recklessly speeding through a red light and striking my car at the driver’s side as I drove home from work. Because the collision caused me to lose consciousness and I suffered a concussion, I do not recall any of the details of that evening apart from leaving the parking lot at work and awaking in my car to find myself being placed on a spinal board by the paramedics. The accident left my body bruised and battered (and briefly hospitalized), my car totaled, and my mind racing with questions. After being discharged from the hospital, I stayed with my mom as I recuperated.

On the morning of Saturday, August 13, my mom woke me up early. Worried about the weather, she suggested that we go to my father’s house, where my sister and her family had already taken refuge due to the rising waters.

It took hours for Momma and me to find a passable route to safely make it to Daddy’s house. Just when we thought it might be alright, all hell broke loose. The waters at dad’s home rose quickly and, try as we might to secure the doors to protect against water coming in, we were not successful.

Each of us had to go outside in the dark of night with very high waters in hopes of a boat rescue. The water had already gotten inside of our cars and the streets could only be navigated by boat. Thankfully, a rescue boat picked us up in daddy’s driveway within five minutes and took us to higher, drier ground. It was a surreal experience as my family and I boated over the tops of cars on streets we’ve driven, rollerskated, and walked on for over 20 years. A friend let us stay the night with her. The next day, Sunday, her house also became inundated and she’s now displaced, too.

In the two weeks since the floods, my parents and I have stayed in seven different locations and we’re still trying to figure out a more long-term housing situation for everyone as we expect it will be a minimum of six months before our homes will once again be habitable.

This historic flood has destroyed more than 100,000 homes and severely disrupted the lives of many more—displacing people from their homes, jobs, and pets; not to mention all of the priceless photos and other cherished items lost. We have lost nearly all of our possessions and are scrambling each day to restore our lives. All of my immediate and “close” family in the area lost their homes.  

Exacerbating this already horrible, stressful situation is the greed and opportunism of those in a position to help. You’d think at a time like this that businesses would try to assist in alleviating some of the discomfort. Many hotels, landlords, and unaffected home sellers are price-gouging flood victims. Hotel rates have skyrocketed as have private rentals.

Both of my parents have serious health issues and were already on limited retiree and disability incomes. I’m still affected and unable to fully function from my car accident. None of us are quite in the shape physically or emotionally to handle the cleanup and recovery process now that the waters have receded. Yet we have no choice but to gather our inner strength and move forward.

We’ve already had to put our ruined belongings in heaps on the curbs. We’ve torn out carpets and drywall. We’ve taken some comfort in the care and concern of our family and friends and the resilience displayed by my niece, who was only able to save her beloved American Girl doll from this disaster. Her wonderful attitude helps put things into perspective.

We’re doing the best we can, but all of us are very concerned about how this will all play out financially. It’s being reported that only 15% of the homes lost were covered by flood insurance. We did not have flood coverage on our various homeowners’ policies because we did not live in a flood zone. Areas of southern Louisiana flooded that have NEVER flooded before in history. This is truly an extraordinary, unexpected hardship we’re all facing now—my family and neighbors and fellow residents of Baton Rouge. It’s been an incredibly trying summer for our city.

I didn’t want to ask for help, but my friend Aaron urged me to not be ashamed or afraid to ask others for help. My family and I were fortunate in that we are alive and together, unlike some of our fellow citizens. But we are overwhelmed by the sheer cost of survival each day—not to mention what it will cost to rebuild our homes. We’ll be grateful for any assistance.

Our immediate need is to find a more “permanent” temporary housing solution while we rebuild. Of course, once we do finally find a place to live, not only will we have to pay rent, utilities, and such there, we’ll also have to keep paying the mortgages, insurance, etc. at our uninhabitable homes. We’ve been paying for hotels and rental cars since the floods began because there is no room available other than shelters and my family’s cars were totaled as a result of significant water damage. Businesses are charging more knowing that people have no alternative but to go deeper in debt to have a clean, private room to sleep in while we attempt to heal our bodies and spirits each night.

Thankfully, FEMA has just started providing assistance to us, covering our hotel bill for the next three weeks. Our desire as a family is to find reasonably affordable temporary housing for everyone before the hotel assistance ends so that we can focus all our efforts on getting our homes repaired, our spirits renewed, and a return of a sense of normalcy.

We’ve definitely been shaken, but we’re also strong, resilient, and faithful in our belief that better days are ahead. We’re doing our best every day to get closer to a normal life again. With your generous help, we’ll be able to get there sooner.

Thanks for reading my story. Any amount you can give will mean the world to us.

On behalf of my entire family--Melvin Louis, Darlene Louis, and Kirbie, Donald, and Tatum Buckles--thank you so much for your consideration and concern.

Tracey Louis