August 28, 2006 marks the one year anniversary of the hurricane that killed many people and destroyed and changed many homes and lives. Hurricane Katrina tore through the city of New Orleans leaving behind nothing but bittersweet memories of the city known as the "Big Easy."

Yates High School, along with many other schools in Houston, received many of Hurricane Katrina's evacuees. A year later, some students have returned to New Orleans, still many others want to forge ahead and make a new life in Houston, and some feel as though “there's no place like home.”

Christopher Smith, a sophomore at Yates and a New Orleans native, is only staying in Houston with his mother temporarily. He was affected by Hurricane Katrina when it claimed his house and the lives of his neighbor and some of his friends. Although the hurricane has affected his life physically and emotionally, there are so many reasons why he wants to return.

“I'm going back to be with my family and friends and to buy a house,” Smith said. “But I'm also ready to go back for the food, Mardi Gras, second lines, Super Sunday, and for the enjoyment of living in the “Big Easy.””

Steeped in rich tradition, New Orleans is known for its colorful, cultural celebrations. A "second line" is a throng of revelers accompanied by a brass band who actually trail the funeral procession and remind those present that the funeral is a cause for celebration, not grief. Super Sundays, according to Mr. Roberts, a New Orleanian teaching at Yates are "like watching the world's largest block party every weekend!"

Meanwhile, Smith who divides his time between Houston and New Orleans, often visits his father who still lives in New Orleans.

Johnise Brown, a junior at Yates, was also displaced by Hurricane Katrina. A year later, she hasn't returned to New Orleans because it's still too emotional. However, Johnise does plan to return after she graduates from Yates to attend Xavier or Tulane University in New Orleans.

In the meantime, Brown said she tries not to think about home.

“It's hard because I thought I was going to live there for the rest of my life. This whole thing is still messing me up,” she said.

On that fateful day one year ago, Brown and her family escaped the great storm by climbing the roof tops of the houses in her lower Ninth Ward community. They found temporary refuge in the Superdome. She didn't know how bad the hurricane was until she got news that her home was flooded.

“New Orleans will never be the same,” Johnise said, “because where I lived doesn't even exist anymore.”

Hurricane Katrina, one of the largest hurricanes in the United States, affected the lives of many people. Children, adults, and elders were forced to leave the place known to them as home. New surroundings and new people only added to the despair. After a year, the city is still being rebuilt. But most Yates' former Lousiana students say that their hometown will never be the same.