Capstone+Article+Paul+Thomas

Article
**__Shelter from the Storm__** **__by__** **__Paul Jeffrey Thomas__**

I've been through hurricanes. From the initial evacuation to coming back home, I know the drama and trauma. I remember how surrealistic it was when, after [|Hurricane Rita]I returned to find my home and property upside down. We leave it all in good condition, and overnight it looks nothing like the world we left.

There are many aspects to recovery. Unless a person has gone through it, they may think it's just a matter of repairs. But I can say from my experience that there is also a psychological effect that often takes longer than the property to recover. I have never been in a war zone, but in my own aftermath of Hurricanes Rita and [|Ike], I have thought that this must be very similar. Routine life is interrupted and the comfort and security of home is lying in disrepair.

[|Hurricane Sandy], now labeled as Superstorm Sandy, was an unprecedented event for the Northeast. I was born and raised there and as the images of destruction flashed over television and internet, I knew many of those places first hand. Part of me almost wished I had gone through it with them. And as the Holidays approach, the rich [|New England traditions] which I am familiar with become ever more important for the people there to hold on to.

In my DDBC Capstone Project, I knew generally what I wanted to do. As a musician and songwriter, I wanted to combine my craft with the requirements of the DDBC. I was saying all along that I wanted to set an original song to images in order to initiate a catechetical experience to the viewers. I think that music is a powerful catechetical tool in the formation of conscience.

A year after Hurricane Rita hit my area, we had an[| interdenominational]prayer service to mark the anniversary. I was appointed as the music director and assembled an outstanding group of musicians to help me. We were looking for a song to be our theme, and then I was inspired and composed the song "Shelter". I felt it captured the hope needed to look beyond the recovery and see that despite everything being upside down, the love and compassion of community could pull us through.

A few weeks ago I saw a slide show on the internet which was comprised of hundreds of Superstorm Sandy pictures. Right in the middle of viewing them it hit me; that is what I want to use for my project. I knew that my song "Shelter" was obviously perfect since it applied universally to anyone going through the aftermath of a hurricane. I went to work remixing the song and using iMovie on my Macbook, imported the free images, courtesy of Getty Images. I saved the piece as a Quick Time movie and then posted it to both [|You Tube] and CNN as an ireport.

I am very satisfied with the result of my project and have already gotten a couple of positive emails. I hope that by viewing it the people affected by Sandy will know that others do understand and they are not alone.Our hope is woven together that better days are ahead and cooperation is a reflection of God's mercy working towards recovery and wholeness.