|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ECU's Thompson balances football and family following Hurricane Katrina
By Nathan Summers, The Daily Reflector
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Not long after Hurricane Hilda collided with the United States at Marsh Island, La., in early October of 1964, 10-year old Donnie Thompson was introduced to the fury of Mother Nature.
Born and raised in Bogalusa, La., East Carolina's assistant head football coach was re-introduced before his 16th birthday when Camille ran roughshod over the Mississippi coastline and inland.
Thompson knew the storm he was seeing from a safe distance two weeks ago trumped them all, even the ones his father had seen before him. Despite his distance, Thompson joined thousands of others in trying to establish some form of contact with family members near the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Perhaps at the top of that list was his father, the Rev. Aaron J. Thompson, a retired football coach of 34 years at nearby Varnado High School.
"I have memories of Hilda and Camille when they came through there," said Thompson, 51, who earned a masters degree in psychology and a bachelors in business administration while playing four years of football at the University of Connecticut. "But not like my dad. He lived through all of them. He related to me that you could double those compared with this one."
Also out of touch from Thompson until recent days were his sisters in Louisiana. Now that all have been safely accounted for, the man who specializes as the Pirates' defensive line coach is slowly starting to rededicate himself to mostly football.
But he also remained mindful of his home and his father, a man who apparently embodies the same steadfast attitude as others in the Gulf region. According to Thompson, the reverend wasn't flying the coop unless absolutely necessary.
In Bogalusa's case, it wasn't necessary, but certainly was close.
"He'd never seen anything like it," Thompson relayed of his father's accounts of Katrina. "To be in your home, and you start to see things torn off the roof and flying away. It was a disaster."
In the days immediately following the storm, mere survival, evacuation and the need for supplies were foremost for those affected most by Katrina. But right behind was a desperate need for communication both out of and into the storm-ravaged areas.
As was the case with most everyone involved, being out of touch was the most trying part of the storm for Thompson, who said he talked to his father when the storm initially hit, but not for a week after that.
"I got a chance to talk to my father Saturday. I hadn't talked to him in about seven days, since it happened," Thompson said. "They were hit pretty hard. The toughest thing is not being able to communicate, not knowing how bad my sisters and other family members were hit. Day after day, they can't call out and you can't call in."
About 95 miles away from Bogalusa, outside of Jackson, Miss., Thompson's brother was facing a similar waiting game. He was unable to drive to Louisiana and unable to contact family by phone.
When he did speak to his father last weekend, Thompson said he was in good spirits, but was still surrounded by uprooted trees and damaged homes with no electricity.
Still, Thompson said he knows this storm proved another near-miss for places like Bogalusa, especially in comparison to other communities.
"There is nowhere near the water damage because it's above sea level (unlike flood-ravaged New Orleans 70 miles southwest). The reason Katrina was a tragedy is because of the bowl in New Orleans, the water damage," Thompson said. "It was a 140-mile-an-hour storm that went through my hometown. But there were no casualties, at least to this point. Everybody is okay in my family, and that's a blessing."
Drawing on his father's experiences has served Thompson well in football and life. Thompson said his father understands it's football season, and that he likely won't see his son until the Pirates have a break in the action.
Sadly for Thompson, it will be the second consecutive trip home to face less-than-happy news.
Last January, the former Illinois, UNC and ECU assistant returned home following the passing of his mother.
Regardless, Thompson said when he does return to Bogalusa, it will be to embrace his family's survival, most notably his father's persistence in riding out another close call in Louisiana.
"He would never leave unless every member of his church was gone," Thompson said. "That's how he's built. As soon as we get a break, when I can go down and spend a day or two with my father, I'll be going down."
Nathan Summers can be reached at (252)329-9595, or at nsummers@coxnc.com. |
|
|
|
|
