Celebration or Commemoration?

August 29, 2005 is a day that will forever live in infamy.
It is a day that the U.S. government shamed itself.
It is a day on which few official people did a "heckuva" job.
A powerfully violent storm named Katrina left its imprint on New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast forever. More than a thousand people died, many in their own homes. Thousands of others will never go home again.
Is this any reason to celebrate?
It is, if you are the Port Townsend/Bay St. Louis Sister-City project. This Tuesday — exactly one year after the flood waters pounded the Gulf Coast — the dozens of generous Port Townsend residents who have given their time, surrendered their comforts and shared their wealth with their fellow artists in Mississippi will come together at a simple summer barbecue to honor those who brought Northwest sunshine into the Old South.
Among those celebrating Tuesday will be the New Old Time Chautauqua troupe that entertained through the region last April.
Once again, our mission is to deliver joy and laughs.
Once again, we stand ready to meet the demand.
Come, celebrate with us. Check out the Sister Cities Web site, and join us along with some Mississippi residents at Fort Word.
It is time we dried our tears.