A Lifetime Of Service Rolls On
Third generation resident born to work for Louisiana
Release Date: August 21, 2006
Release Number: 1603-528
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NEW ORLEANS, La. -- Mary Sutton can't seem to get enough. With tenacity and charm resembling a nun on a mission, she puts in her twelve-hour days as a voluntary agency liaison at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offices in New Orleans, and then looks for more work to do.
Mary's tenacity and charm come from nurture as well as nature. Her parents were married during an approaching hurricane. Raised on Prytania Street in Uptown New Orleans, she spent 22 years working with Catholic Charities in New Orleans including the task of disaster response coordinator. For much of that time Mary has also worked as a volunteer with the American Red Cross, serving on the board of directors of the Southeast Region in Louisiana.
Three years ago, when the opportunity to work for the Little Sisters of the Poor in the Mary Joseph Residence for the Elderly presented itself, she jumped at it.
"From the moment I walked in, it spoke to me," said Mary. And then the oncoming Hurricane Katrina caused the Little Sisters to evacuate their residents to safer haven. Their disaster plans worked without a hitch and all residents vacated successfully to Baton Rouge where they were housed for a couple of months.
"It was like a big camping trip," said Mary. "My two cats and I shared a cot in a closet for two weeks." As spelled out in the disaster plan, the residents were accompanied by key staff from each of the important service areas of the Mary Joseph Residence. Maintenance, engineering, nursing, social services, housekeeping, laundry, cooking and other service areas sent staff to Baton Rouge to keep services flowing smoothly. And of course, the Little Sisters themselves worked tirelessly to uphold the highest standards of care.
Back in New Orleans, the Mary Joseph Residence was housing many first responders including the National Guard, firemen and police officers.
After a couple of months of "camping" in Baton Rouge, the Little Sisters of the Poor decided not to return to the Mary Joseph Residence which had been in service since the 1970s and was in need of renovation. Instead, they found long-term housing for the displaced residents in some of their other facilities, sadly leaving New Orleans for the first time since the 1860s.
Mary was recruited by FEMA to help coordinate the many voluntary agencies working to help Louisiana recover from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. And she brought more than management skills to the job-she brought personal disaster experience. Mary's current home on Nashville Avenue in the University Section of New Orleans went under six feet of water. She lost everything except the important supplies and personal items she had stored safely in her emergency kit. Mary said that she also has her china and crystal, which will apparently survive anything. The rest, however, is gone.
Mary calls the transition her "great de-cluttering project."
Today, Mary works closely with voluntary agencies from Louisiana and around the country. Her job is to help the big and small agencies do the job that they have done "since the beginning of time-help people in need." And she loves it.
"I think we have the best job in FEMA," she said, smiling. And then she went back to work.
FEMA manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.
Last Modified: Monday, 21-Aug-2006 09:12:24