Some would say Jodi Korte is generous with her time, as she has made two trips to Louisiana to help Hurricane Katrina victims and plans a third in October that she scheduled before Hurricane Gustav struck earlier this month.
But Korte says she has received more than she has given. “The people of New Orleans are amazing; they’re gracious and they’re happy to have you there. They count their blessings every day,” says the administrative assistant intermediate in Health Care Home Care Services with the U-M Visiting Nurses (MVN).
“It’s a really good feeling. You see that they’re hopeful about their lives.”
As Gustav approached a few weeks ago, “I was holding my breath along with the rest of the country,” she says. “It’s not encouraging to see more damage upon damage.”
Korte says the hurricane relief group she works with, Get in The Car (GITC), continues to collect information on Gustav damage and is committed to the area for as long as they’re needed.
Born and raised in the Northeast, she treasured visits to New York City as a girl. “I loved the excitement of it, you could do everything you could want,” she says. “I remember seeing the sidewalks sparkle — I think it was composite they put in them. When you’re young it looks pretty cool.”
After graduating in 1987 from the University of Massachusetts, she had an internship in Manhattan then landed a job doing singles production for Atlantic Records. That led to a position with Asylum Records in Nashville, where she worked as assistant to the president of the company.
“That meant a lot of studio production work, coordinating studios and songwriters,” Korte says. Artists she worked with included Emmylou Harris and Randy Travis. “You’re handling calls from publishers, logging tapes, hiring caterers, making sure (musical) charts are done.”
In 1996 Korte decided to start her own production company. But when she left Nashville to visit brother Todd in Lansing for a few months, she met Jeff Korte, whom she would marry.
At the time Jeff Korte was working for MedEQUIP, a U-M medical equipment provider. He had a friend who worked for MVN who passed along information about a job opening to Jodi.
Korte has worked for MVN, which is part of the U-M Health System (UMHS) Home Care Services, for 8-1/2 years. Of her administrative aide role, Korte says, “It’s very challenging; no days are ever the same — that’s what I like about it.”
Korte got involved with the hurricane relief group GITC in October 2007, roughly two years after Katrina and one year after husband Jeff’s death from complications related to diabetes. “He wanted to help the hurricane victims, he was frustrated he couldn’t go because of his illness,” she says, adding that she joined 48 others on the trip.
Korte has one treasured souvenir of her work in New Orleans — a velvet, brightly colored hat, completely covered with feathers. The hat, which survived Katrina in a hatbox in an attic, was presented to her by a hurricane survivor.
“It hangs on my dresser and I see it every day. It reminds me to just be thankful for what I have right here and right now, and to be generous with what I have,” Korte says.
“That hat was a gift of generosity from a woman whose family had lost nearly everything. It means a lot to me.”
The weekly Spotlight features staff members at the University. To nominate a candidate, please contact the Record staff at [email protected].
