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Homeowner Bio
Louis Armstrong, New Orleans trumpet musician, inquired, “Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans?” On August 29, 2005 thousands of displaced families and individuals got their answer. Among them was 53-year-old Molly Butler.
Molly grew up in Carrollton, a neighborhood near Tulane University. She lived in the New Orleans area her entire life and never called any other place home. When her sister Connie passed away more than 20 years ago, Molly decided to deepen her family roots in New Orleans and buy her house on Majestic Oaks Street in New Orleans East.
There, Molly and her mother raised Molly’s two children, Starlette (now 32) and Chandra (now 35), while also helping raise her niece, Jaquel (now 33) and nephew, Ervin (now 26). This house remained a place to call home through the children’s adolescence and nearly the past 20 years of Molly’s life.
When Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, Molly was forced to abandon the only city she ever knew. Molly and her mother evacuated to Chicago, Illinois to stay with family. Just six short months after the storm Molly’s mother became very ill.
“She wanted to [go home] so badly, but I just couldn’t get her home,” Molly says of her mother’s dying wish.
After two years in Illinois, Molly’s mother passed away.
However, just like when her sister passed away many years before, Molly saw this as another opportunity to strengthen her roots in New Orleans even after a two year hiatus.
“I had to go back and bury her in New Orleans,” Molly says.
Since her mother’s burial, Molly has stayed in New Orleans. Currently, she resides in a rental house in Algiers on the West Bank.
On November 26, 2009, Starlette had a baby girl named, Mallary, and the two were living with Molly in Algiers. Starlette has since moved out and the only thing Molly’s gotten in return is a “house seizure” notice that is set for March, 2010.
Soon, Molly may learn all over again what it means to miss New Orleans. The house she currently lives in is being taken from her and the house she owns can’t be lived in. It’s a paradox that too many people in the New Orleans area have encountered and it begins to weaken even the strongest willed.
“I’m just tired. It’s the only home I have and I want to be there,” Molly says.
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Under Construction
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