September 3, 2025
A family displaced by Hurricane Katrina recalls the Minneapolis community’s generosity during the harrowing ordeal.
A New Orleans family displaced by Hurricane Katrina 20 years ago is reflecting on the generosity of Minneapolis locals who helped get them through the harrowing ordeal.
Stacey and Harold Bruno, along with their two children, Tiara, 8, and Harold Jr., 6, at the time, recall fleeing New Orleans for Minneapolis after Hurricane Katrina devastated their city. Initially hoping to ride out the storm, the family’s growing unease led them to pack a few suitcases and head north, with Stacey’s sister and her children, as well as her in-laws, who followed in another car.
“We didn’t know if we were gonna be coming back, but we didn’t bring much at all,” Stacey told People, reflecting on the 20th anniversary of the natural disaster.
Stacey’s in-laws were dropped off in Mississippi with relatives, while Stacey and the rest of the family drove over 20 hours to Minneapolis. Upon arrival, they turned on the TV and saw the full scale of the devastation back in New Orleans.
“We found out that the levees broke and our city was flooded,” Stacey recalls. “We couldn’t get back.”
In Minneapolis, the local community rallied around the Brunos. Businessman Greg Lawrence and his wife, Janet, offered the family a rent-free home for a year after hearing about their situation.
“They’re charming people,” Stacey said. “They pulled out all the stops. They made sure that we had bedding, clothes, and food. They were really, really hospitable to us.”
Other locals pitched in, donating everything from a bunk bed and a 27-inch TV to a car for Stacey and her family.
“We really got everything that we needed,” Stacey shared.
The family briefly returned to New Orleans to salvage any property they could. Despite widespread looting and the marking of homes, the Brunos recovered heirlooms and mementos, including family photos, the kids’ report cards, and an antique china cabinet that Stacy’s father had brought from Korea.
Back in Minneapolis, they stayed until their children finished the 2006 school year before returning to New Orleans, where they lived in a small trailer park for months until securing an apartment and later permanent housing. Since Katrina, Stacey and Harold, now 51, have welcomed two more children—Antonio, 16, and Autumn, 11—and a granddaughter, A’Myri, 1, through their now-adult son, Harold Jr.
Though the family lost touch with Greg and Janet Lawrence, they remain forever grateful for the couple’s generosity during that difficult time.
“I haven’t talked to the Lawrences much since,” Stacey said. “I always wonder how his family is doing, and I always like to let him know, ‘Hey, my family’s doing fine.’ “
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