Danny Wuerffel with his Desire Street Academy students during 8th-grade graduation in 2004. Courtesy of Desire Street Ministries

For former Heisman Trophy-winner Danny Wuerffel, New Orleans has been a place of both highs and lows.

In the 1997 Sugar Bowl at the Superdome in New Orleans, the star quarterback of the University of Florida was on top of the world as he led the Gators over rival Florida State, 52-20, to win the school's first and only national championship.

Wuerffel soon experienced another high point in the Crescent City when the New Orleans Saints drafted him. Then as an NFL rookie, Wuerffel discovered Desire Street Ministries (DSM), located in New Orleans' poverty-stricken Ninth Ward.

Wuerffel began helping the organization, which provides health care, housing, education and recreational opportunities for residents of the Desire Street neighborhood. He became DSM's full-time director of development after retiring from the NFL two years ago.

Wuerffel was blessed to be in New Orleans.

But when Hurricane Katrina submerged most of the city on Aug. 29, his life and ministry were turned upside down. And the already-struggling Ninth Ward was one of the hardest hit areas.

"The worst part of humanity came out in the aftermath of the hurricane," Wuerffel told Today's Christian, referring to the looting prevalent in New Orleans after Katrina. "But in all of that, I believe that somehow God is doing things that inevitably will be good.

"Romans 8:28 says that we know that all things work together for good," he said. "All things aren't good. But all things can work together for good. Part of my faith reminds me that this is not my ultimate home. Things will not be ideal here. But we have the opportunity to do a lot of good. You don't know why things are happening the way they are, but you trust that God is in control."

Wants and needs
Wuerffel, 31, his wife, Jessica, and their young son, Jonah, evacuated New Orleans, escaping Katrina's carnage. Mo Leverett, who founded DSM in 1990, also evacuated safely with his family to the Atlanta area.

When Today's Christian contacted him in September, more than three weeks after the hurricane hit, Wuerffel was pessimistic about his home.

"We saw our neighbor's house in a photo," Wuerffel said. "It was up to the roof with flooding. We can only assume that's the same for ours. We're trying to allow ourselves to experience the different emotions that come with a tragedy like this. I have wept over our city, thinking about the many families and children that probably drowned in their homes. It's an incredibly sad thing.

"At the same time, we've experienced times of incredible joy and vision and see an opportunity to do greater good than we've ever done before," he said. "We're very resolved and very determined and passionate about helping people."

The disaster has forced the couple to "relearn the difference between wants and needs."

"How much time do we spend thinking we need this and that, and get bent out of shape?" Wuerffel said. "Now we have nothing, but we have everything we need. I have my wife, my son, and we have food and shelter. We feel fortunate to have that because not everybody does. I think it's a perspective that doesn't just happen overnight. It's one that the Lord has been working into our hearts over a long period of time. Our spirits and our mission are strong."

Indeed, in the aftermath of Katrina, Wuerffel has been working from his parents' home in Destin, Florida, attempting to locate people and raise money for families associated with DSM, which suffered major damage.

Wuerffel said DSM's 40 full-time employees have been accounted for, and they have located at least 60 percent of the 190 students who attend Desire Street Academy, a school for boys in grades 7-12. For several agonizing weeks, an eighth-grader named Heath, whom Wuerffel and his wife support with a scholarship, was missing in the aftermath of the storm. But Danny's prayers were answered recently when Heath and his family were found safe.

"There is an eighth-grader who my wife and I provide a scholarship for to attend our school," Wuerffel said. "I am praying regularly for Heath. No one knows where Heath or his family is or if they left the city. My heart will be broken if we don't find Heath."

Many of the underprivileged served by DSM were "scattered in shelters across the country," he said.

"Many are in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and other places," Wuerffel said. "I'm being very optimistic in thinking that people were able to get to the Superdome and Convention Center and that they just don't know how or can't get in touch with us because of communications challenges. The reality is that I know some of them didn't get out. I'm sad for the day when we find out who they were."

A time to rebuild
In the meantime, Wuerffel is seeking donations to keep DSM going. Before Katrina hit, the ministry was thriving with a new church, a new multimillion-dollar high school, and a new pediatric clinic.

The University of Florida's athletic association has pledged $50,000 from a pay-per-view telecast between the Gators and Louisiana Tech, The Gainesville Sun reported.

"There has been an outpouring of love and support and God is blessing us," Wuerffel said. "Those who have supported us over the years have really stood behind us. The needs are great and will be for some time. At this point, it's too early to put a dollar figure next to the need. We're focused on re-establishing our school as a boarding school at a satellite location."

The ministry signed a lease with the University of Florida to use a facility at Camp Timpoochee in Niceville, Florida, through May for Desire Street Academy. Classes began again on Oct. 3 for more than 100 students.

"Our administrative and ministry offices are still temporarily located in the Atlanta area pending our next steps in terms of relief and redevelopment," Wuerffel said.

He added that DSM would like to return to the Desire neighborhood—once known as the most violent neighborhood in New Orleans; in fact, it even surpassed New York City in violent crimes per capita. Still, Desire Street Ministries had become a haven for countless kids and their families.

"Our facility may be damaged, but our ministry, our vision, and our movement is stronger than ever," he said. "Our mission is to revitalize the Desire neighborhood through spiritual and community development. It was once ranked the worst neighborhood in the country. We may now have the opportunity to rebuild it in a way that people would want it to be. We may be part of revitalization on a larger scale.

"We're very resolved and very determined and passionate about helping people," Wuerffel said. "My prayer would be that God would use these circumstances for His glory and that the love of Christ will shine through our ministry and that God would bring true hope during this time of great despair."

God has already answered his prayer. In the wake of Katrina, Wuerffel has had numerous media opportunities to discuss his faith in Christ.

"Nothing hardly ever rattles Danny Wuerffel," Steve Spurrier, Wuerffel's college coach, told USA Today. "He has such a sincere faith and belief in God that things are going to work out. He's definitely a good person to have helping to lead that school and those kids, the inner-city kids in New Orleans."

College football analyst Bill Curry echoed his point.

"When the kid quarterback won big games and a national championship for his team, he was having fun," Curry wrote on espn.com. "The luster of that and other victories will fade. What Wuerffel is doing these days is not fun as he seeks his Desire Street children, who are scattered about the country in evacuee centers. But his passion will generate joy as one life after another is reclaimed from the storm and the streets. That will never fade. Wuerffel is living out his faith in such a way as to have an eternal impact."

Eric Tiansay is a freelance writer from Florida and a frequent contributor to Today's Christian.

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