The New Orleans Saints win the Superbowl and help lift a city still feeling the devastating after effects of Hurricane Katrina
By Gabe Perna
When are sports more than just a game? The answer is it happens more than you think. The truth is people associate themselves with teams and athletes. To many, the success of those teams and athletes reflect upon them and their city. Winning can lift spirits and losing can crush them, either way, the game has made an impact.
The impact of sports was never more apparent than this past Sunday when the New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts to win Superbowl XLIV. Four and a half years ago, the City of New Orleans was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. 85 percent of the city was underwater and thousands were forced to evacuate across the country.
Many others, who couldn’t escape but were fortunate enough to survive, had been forced to find residence in the Saints’ home stadium, the Superdome. The Saints and many others were forced to find refuge elsewhere in the country. What was once a rousing metropolitan was turned into the site of destruction.
Despite the efforts of many different reconstruction projects, the damage is still being felt. 150,000 of the city’s 500,000 residents have yet to return home. Many neighborhoods still remain abandoned. The city is far from rebuilt.
Yet despite that, the Saints winning the Superbowl will go a long way in helping the city restore itself to a pre-Katrina psyche. In the process, by winning its first Superbowl in its 40 plus year history the team ended its own history of futility. The celebrations in New Orleans will last a while and for the first time in four and a half years, Bayou residents have something to cheer about.
More on the Saints Superbowl winning at NOLA.com