CARBONDALE - Nearly two-and-a-half years after the costliest natural disaster in American history ravaged the city of New Orleans, it appears that things are slowly coming back to life. But slowly, indeed. Evidence of the carnage and asperity left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina is still arrestingly prominent, and people and families are still very much in need of help.

The day after Thanksgiving, Nov. 23, Scott Ely, owner of Sunsense Inc. in Carbondale, received a call from Steve McCarney, one-time instructor at Colorado Mountain College, as well as friend and mentor to Ely in his early solar quests.

It was McCarney's involvement with the nationally renowned Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF), a widely prestigious nonprofit organization aimed at bringing solar power and modern communications to areas of need in the developing world, that had earned him a call from Hollywood actor Brad Pitt.

Pitt asked McCarney to come to New Orleans and act as project manager for the installation of nine solar electric systems as part of an endeavor to build 150 affordable and sustainable homes in the Lower Ninth Ward District, an area that was heavily devastated by the storm.

The rebuilding of New Orleans' culturally renowned Lower Ninth Ward District has recently become the focus of a massive humanitarian effort by Pitt and the Make It Right Project, for which Pitt has donated $5 million and has been joined by many prominent architects who will be unveiling their groundbreaking designs for the project.

McCarney accepted the offer, and went to work assembling a skilled crew of installers and electricians to join in the effort. But when McCarney's initial crew backed out on him at the last minute, it was his old friend Ely and Carbondale's own Sunsense Inc. that stepped in and saved the day.

"We kicked butt," said Ely of the successful efforts of his crew down in New Orleans that consisted of three solid 10- to 11-hour days. "It was fun for me to strap the tool belt on again. ... I'm usually behind the desk."

Ely just recently returned from the road trip to New Orleans where he and his crew were able to volunteer time, knowledge and expertise, and lend a helping hand in installing nine grid-tied 5-kilowatt solar electric systems in the new community development. The purpose, Ely said, was to contribute to the larger goal of demonstrating that solar, be it thermal, water, etc., is a huge element of sustainable design.

Ely said that the trip was one that was successful and moving at the same time.

"I didn't know what to expect having never been there," Ely said of the damage that he encountered once he arrived. "It was eye-opening.

Two-and-a-half years later there is still (a lot of) visible evidence." But the portrait of a superhero on a tall horse is not one that Ely wants painted of himself or his staff.

"We're just happy that we could participate and contribute in our own small way," Ely said.

Since the project's inception, numerous companies and organizations have come together and have contributed to the massive effort. Efforts like soup kitchens, which have kept the workers fed on site, or staging companies that have contributed scaffolding for workers to stand on and use in their installation of the solar electric systems are just a couple of examples of the myriad contributors to the project.

On Dec. 3, the Pink Project was launched as part of the larger project, which unveiled 150 bright pink structures the size of real houses that are erected around the site. The faux pink houses serve as stand-ins for the vibrant community of green, affordable and sustainable homes that are to eventually be built.

Though Ely feels that the trip was a huge success and he welcomes an opportunity to return someday, he feels most proud of the fact that he was able to be, as has been the trend, just one of the many contributors from Carbondale that have helped various causes throughout the world.

In particular, Ely pointed to the phenomenal efforts of Carbondale's local fire department who had informally adopted Pearlington, Miss., in the immediate aftermath of the Katrina tragedy and has been instrumental in their salvation efforts, still continuing today.

"They were there early, when it was critical," Ely said. "They were incredible."

While roaming around the site down in New Orleans, Ely found a small trinket that was buried in the mud. Though debris and various artifacts can be found pretty much everywhere at the site, a little figurine that was once, perhaps, part of a child's sports trophy caught Ely's eye and has served as a memento that he has kept as a reminder of his trip.

"These folks need help down there," Ely said. "We're helping promote a project that is helping people rebuild their lives, and that is great."

To make a donation to the Make It Right project, visit www.makeitrightnola.org.