Katrina Pieces

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most powerful storm to ever hit North America, slammed into the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Somewhere between the 180 MPH sustained winds and in some places, over a 30-foot storm surge, she left remnants, pieces of what used to be. Homes that had stood over a century and oak trees that had stood longer, had literally been swept into the Gulf of Mexico. Empty slabs and steps leading nowhere, became the norm along the sixty-mile stretch of manmade beach. It looked as though a giant blowtorch had been used to desecrate all that had been in Katrina’s path.

The mighty oaks that had withstood many other hurricanes were stripped of all foliage and stood naked up and down that long stretch of beach. Many of those were deemed dead. However artists who used chain saws as their paintbrush, formed the once-ugly trunks into various shapes and sizes of sea-life such as dolphins and seahorses. The tree-trunk artwork served as inspiration to the traumatized people left in the wake of that terrible storm. South Mississippians had been completely caught off-guard, and along with the landscape, had been forever changed.

Located in the heart of downtown Ocean Springs, just one of the communities impacted by the storm, is a small business known as the TatoNut Shop, which was originally the Spud Nut Shop. David Mohler, one of seven sons, began working in the donut shop long before entering kindergarten, as did his brothers. He learned his work ethic, the kind of work ethic that built America, from his father.

Once he graduated from Ocean Springs High School, David bought out his father and brothers and began making donuts everyday. A few year’s later, a pretty young girl named Teresa, ten years David’s junior, began working in the donut shop. She and David fell in love and married shortly after she graduated. Within a few years, they became the proud parents of two beautiful girls; Katelyn born first, then Sophia.

On Sunday morning, August 28, 2005, Hurricane Katrina filled the entire Gulf of Mexico. When confirmation was received that she would have the greatest impact on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, the Mohlers, like so many other Coastians, fled to the safety of the Florida panhandle to ride out the storm. Once the unrelenting winds, which blew upwards of eighteen hours, and the storm surge, finally subsided, those who had left their homes and businesses began to find out how much damage had been done. Communication of any kind was difficult as power outages were widespread and even cell phone towers had been downed.

However, when the Mohlers finally made contact with friends and family who knew about their home and business, they were told they had almost been left untouched by the storm. This was shocking news because it seemed the entirety of the Coast had been not just scathed, but much had been utterly destroyed. When the Mohler family-of-four, made it back to Ocean Springs, David took out his camera to video the destruction of his hometown.

David remembers riding down the once-familiar streets, now almost unrecognizable due to the destruction of wind and water. Out of reverence for all that was lost, he put away his camera. With tears in his eyes, he recounted his feelings about capturing the kind of devastation left in the wake of Katrina. Teresa remembers Katelyn and Sophia on the floorboard of the backseat, even as little girls, unable to take in the wasteland that was once familiar. David recalls feeling guilty that his home, business, and family were unscathed. Teresa recounts a single haunting question. “What will be our Katrina?”

In the aftermath of the storm and destruction of not just the landscape, but also a way of life, hometown folks begged David and Teresa to re-open the donut shop. Locals wanted to believe that something could still be normal and familiar; that something could be counted on. And so they did.

However, it was difficult to have the necessary supplies delivered in order to make donuts due to the massive transportation deficit from the east to Mobile, the west to New Orleans, and the north to Jackson. They were forced to have flour delivered via Fed-Ex from Birmingham. This created a newfound need to use everything to maximum capability.

One of the donuts made at TatoNut is known as a Persian. It’s round and, some might say, resembles a cinnamon roll. David cuts out each and every donut made, including the Persian. When he realized that he was throwing away the irregular pieces of dough cut away from the roundness of the Persians, he one day exclaimed, “Here, throw this is the fryer. Somebody will eat it.” Thus was born Katrina pieces.

Sitting on the counter of the donut shop is a short explanation of a Katrina Piece: Donut debris, aftermath of donut making, ugly, but still tasty. Even after supply lines had been re-opened, folks continued to ask for Katrina pieces. They remain a mainstay in the case today.

David and Teresa continued working the long, hard hours required to run a donut shop. In order to take a vacation, they shut down their business a few weeks out of the year, never missing an opportunity for family time. After all, Katelyn and Sophia were growing up. They made it a priority to be together as often as possible. At least once a year, the Mohlers loaded up and went to Disneyworld, something they all enjoyed doing.

Late in the summer of 2009, seven-year-old Sophia began having problems with her sight. She seemed to be clumsy, running into things, and had to turn her head to the side in order to see what was in front of her. Very concerned, David and Teresa took Sophia to the doctor. Immediately an MRI was ordered. That evening, the radiologist, who was also a life-long resident of Ocean Springs, went to the Mohler home, with the news that Sophia had a terminal brain tumor. Devastation, the kind that wiped away the idea of what the Mohlers thought life ought to be, should have been, filled the more-than-worried parents. However, they remained hopeful in spite of the grim prognosis.

MD Anderson and the Ronald McDonald House in Houston, Texas, became the Mohler’s home away from home. They had to close their business, not knowing when or if they would ever re-open. They lived through the horror, the nightmare, of watching their beautiful young daughter, suffer through chemo, radiation, and the side effects of the many drugs, trying to maintain Sophia’s life. They witnessed Katelyn’s grief watching her little sister and best friend slowly lose her ability to live the zealous life she wished to live. David and Teresa learned to live each day with the hope found in that day, leaning on the God who they both trusted, although having no understanding the purpose of the suffering they witnessed.

The Mohler family had the entire community of Ocean Springs wrap its arms around a family in pain, raising money to help with medical costs; a grateful community that had been on the receiving end after Katrina, was provided plenty of opportunity to give back. Even folks outside of the local area hearing of the Mohlers situation wanted to give. Some gave money, others their time, all offered their prayers.

Just a little more than a year after the initial diagnosis, Sophia lost her batter with cancer, Katelyn lost her sister, and David and Teresa lost their daughter. Sophia was eight years old. There are no words. Grief hangs on my pen. 

Just when I think all is lost in the story, David and Teresa pick it up and carry on with the hope that only those who have a deep and abiding faith in the Creator can have. In their loss, David and Teresa find redemption, something of beauty and worth, through giving to others. David seeks out the homeless, if only one, with food and offering of helping him find shelter. Teresa has continued to pour her life into Katelyn, who has just graduated from high school.

I have personally stood in the back of the donut shop more than a few times and watched David and Teresa work side by side. It is as though I observe a dance, one that cannot be taught; a dance that comes with pain and loss and looking for ways to give back some of the love they received from the life of Sophia. 

Yes. David and Teresa have taken the leftovers, the ugliness of grief, to make something that is more than just palatable. They quietly live out what their Katrina pieces represent: taking what might appear to be the leftovers and allowing them to be more than fulfilling. They allow their loss to become another’s gain.

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David and Theresa Mohler

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