A blessing for 1 sister, a struggle for another.

Byline: Linda Shrieves

Dec. 31--The Christmas holidays always have been a happy time in the Haggerty and Poissenot households. But this year, they carry bittersweet emotions for Theresa and Ron Haggerty and Pat and Ronnie Poissenot.

In 2005, the two couples, along with their extended families, evacuated from New Orleans to Central Florida to escape Hurricane Katrina. Last April, Pat and Ronnie -- Theresa's sister and brother-in-law -- returned to Louisiana to rebuild their lives. The Haggertys opted to start over here. For the Haggertys, the decision has been a blessing. Their children, Rachel, 16, and Josh, 3, are adjusting well. Their new home in Oviedo is furnished and decorated. And Theresa is expecting a baby girl in January -- the first Haggerty born outside New Orleans in generations.

Yet Theresa, 41, a teacher at Bishop Moore High School, is finding it hard to be so far from big sister Pat, 60. For more than a decade, they lived next door to each other in St. Bernard Parish. When Theresa had complications during her pregnancies, Pat was there. When Theresa gave birth, Pat was there. Now Pat isn't. "It's hard for us to be apart," says Theresa, "but it's been harder on Pat. . . . They're still living with the hurricane. We're past it. We don't have to see it day in and day out." The sisters talk by cell phone almost every night, sharing the ups, such as Theresa's pregnancy, and the downs -- including news that Pat's daughter, Monique, lost her hotel-management job when the business closed. "I still cry," Pat says of their conversations. "I can't help it." There have been more lows than highs for the Poissenots, who live in Mandeville, north of New Orleans. The owners

of the nursing home where Ronnie's father died during Katrina have been indicted because they didn't evacuate the center. But Ronnie figures it will take years for the Louisiana courts to mete out justice. Meanwhile, his efforts to get workers' compensation for a hand injury are backed up in the court system. So with no income except Ronnie's police pension, the Poissenots have been pinching pennies. It didn't help that the home they moved into last spring had a mold problem inherited from the previous owners -- a $6,000 repair. Pat knows that Theresa and Ron aren't returning to the New Orleans area, where prospects for the future seem dim. "I know it'll be at least 15 years before this state gets back on its feet," says Pat. "I'm realistic about that."

But when baby Cate arrives, Pat will fly to Orlando to do what she always has: take care of her baby sister.

Copyright (c) 2006, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

A blessing for 1 sister, a struggle for another.

Byline: Linda Shrieves

Dec. 31--The Christmas holidays always have been a happy time in the Haggerty and Poissenot households. But this year, they carry bittersweet emotions for Theresa and Ron Haggerty and Pat and Ronnie Poissenot.

In 2005, the two couples, along with their extended families, evacuated from New Orleans to Central Florida to escape Hurricane Katrina. Last April, Pat and Ronnie -- Theresa's sister and brother-in-law -- returned to Louisiana to rebuild their lives. The Haggertys opted to start over here. For the Haggertys, the decision has been a blessing. Their children, Rachel, 16, and Josh, 3, are adjusting well. Their new home in Oviedo is furnished and decorated. And Theresa is expecting a baby girl in January -- the first Haggerty born outside New Orleans in generations.

Yet Theresa, 41, a teacher at Bishop Moore High School, is finding it hard to be so far from big sister Pat, 60. For more than a decade, they lived next door to each other in St. Bernard Parish. When Theresa had complications during her pregnancies, Pat was there. When Theresa gave birth, Pat was there. Now Pat isn't. "It's hard for us to be apart," says Theresa, "but it's been harder on Pat. . . . They're still living with the hurricane. We're past it. We don't have to see it day in and day out." The sisters talk by cell phone almost every night, sharing the ups, such as Theresa's pregnancy, and the downs -- including news that Pat's daughter, Monique, lost her hotel-management job when the business closed. "I still cry," Pat says of their conversations. "I can't help it." There have been more lows than highs for the Poissenots, who live in Mandeville, north of New Orleans. The owners

of the nursing home where Ronnie's father died during Katrina have been indicted because they didn't evacuate the center. But Ronnie figures it will take years for the Louisiana courts to mete out justice. Meanwhile, his efforts to get workers' compensation for a hand injury are backed up in the court system. So with no income except Ronnie's police pension, the Poissenots have been pinching pennies. It didn't help that the home they moved into last spring had a mold problem inherited from the previous owners -- a $6,000 repair. Pat knows that Theresa and Ron aren't returning to the New Orleans area, where prospects for the future seem dim. "I know it'll be at least 15 years before this state gets back on its feet," says Pat. "I'm realistic about that."

But when baby Cate arrives, Pat will fly to Orlando to do what she always has: take care of her baby sister.

Copyright (c) 2006, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

A blessing for 1 sister, a struggle for another.

Byline: Linda Shrieves

Dec. 31--The Christmas holidays always have been a happy time in the Haggerty and Poissenot households. But this year, they carry bittersweet emotions for Theresa and Ron Haggerty and Pat and Ronnie Poissenot.

In 2005, the two couples, along with their extended families, evacuated from New Orleans to Central Florida to escape Hurricane Katrina. Last April, Pat and Ronnie -- Theresa's sister and brother-in-law -- returned to Louisiana to rebuild their lives. The Haggertys opted to start over here. For the Haggertys, the decision has been a blessing. Their children, Rachel, 16, and Josh, 3, are adjusting well. Their new home in Oviedo is furnished and decorated. And Theresa is expecting a baby girl in January -- the first Haggerty born outside New Orleans in generations.

Yet Theresa, 41, a teacher at Bishop Moore High School, is finding it hard to be so far from big sister Pat, 60. For more than a decade, they lived next door to each other in St. Bernard Parish. When Theresa had complications during her pregnancies, Pat was there. When Theresa gave birth, Pat was there. Now Pat isn't. "It's hard for us to be apart," says Theresa, "but it's been harder on Pat. . . . They're still living with the hurricane. We're past it. We don't have to see it day in and day out." The sisters talk by cell phone almost every night, sharing the ups, such as Theresa's pregnancy, and the downs -- including news that Pat's daughter, Monique, lost her hotel-management job when the business closed. "I still cry," Pat says of their conversations. "I can't help it." There have been more lows than highs for the Poissenots, who live in Mandeville, north of New Orleans. The owners

of the nursing home where Ronnie's father died during Katrina have been indicted because they didn't evacuate the center. But Ronnie figures it will take years for the Louisiana courts to mete out justice. Meanwhile, his efforts to get workers' compensation for a hand injury are backed up in the court system. So with no income except Ronnie's police pension, the Poissenots have been pinching pennies. It didn't help that the home they moved into last spring had a mold problem inherited from the previous owners -- a $6,000 repair. Pat knows that Theresa and Ron aren't returning to the New Orleans area, where prospects for the future seem dim. "I know it'll be at least 15 years before this state gets back on its feet," says Pat. "I'm realistic about that."

But when baby Cate arrives, Pat will fly to Orlando to do what she always has: take care of her baby sister.

Copyright (c) 2006, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.