On Wednesday, we toured a St. Bernard Parish community aid center for fishing families run by Catholic Charities of New Orleans.  There we met several fishermen, including this gentleman named Kerry.  He's a sixth generation fisherman, focusing primarily on crabbing.

Kerry took time to chat with Jill Foster and I (pictured in the fourth and last photo), and told us a bit about the plight of local fishers.  It was quite a moment, Gulf fishing communities in the United States have gone back generation upon generation. He himself was taught fish by his Dad, as had the previous five generations in his family, a common testimony to the long-term cultural stature of Gulf Fishing as a way of life.

The cultural impact of taking away a profession for more than year  cannot be underestimated. Kerry could not even contemplate it.  Everytime we brought it up, he said he had to make it through today.  Then the rest will come clear.

Yet he did acknowledge the possible long term impact of the Deep Horizon disaster: "My father always told me this business was a dying one. But no one imagined it would happen like this."

He made jokes and smiled quite a bit. Still - though the moment was jovial - you could see the sadness in his eyes. It brought all of the suffering of these fishing families home for me.