ST. BERNARD PARISH , Louisiana ( CNN ) -- `` We were a normal red-blooded American family , '' recalls Rudy Aguilar . `` And ... it took [ one day ] to wipe us out . '' Liz McCartney moved to St. Bernard Parish to help residents rebuild their homes after Katrina . A lifelong resident of St. Bernard Parish , a community just east of New Orleans , Aguilar lost everything during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 . Nearly three years later , like many in his area , Aguilar is still struggling to get back on his feet . But now he has help . From her home 1,000 miles away in Washington , Liz McCartney was haunted by images of the storm 's destruction and stories of people like Aguilar . In February 2006 , she and her boyfriend , Zack Rosenburg , went to New Orleans to volunteer . The experience changed their lives -- so much that they quit their jobs and moved to St. Bernard Parish . Now they 're dedicated to helping people rebuild and move back into their homes . Watch McCartney describe how the St. Bernard Project is rebuilding homes » . McCartney said that when she first arrived in St. Bernard Parish , she was stunned . `` We just wanted to pitch in and help out , '' McCartney , now 35 , recalls . `` I naively thought that six months later , you 'd see all kinds of progress . [ But it ] looked like the storm had just rolled through . '' St. Bernard Parish was once home to 67,000 residents , but Katrina left nearly all of the area 's homes uninhabitable . As McCartney got to know the locals , she was reminded of her parents and grandparents . `` These were people who worked their whole lives , put their kids through college , and had never had to receive [ help ] before , '' she says . That 's when she decided to do more to help the community recover . By June 2006 , the couple had left Washington and moved to St. Bernard Parish . Neither knew anything about construction , but both felt they could use their experience raising money and organizing volunteers to help with the rebuilding effort . Local residents , touched by the couple 's leap of faith , taught them basic construction . Within two months , McCartney and Rosenburg opened the nonprofit St. Bernard Project , which focuses on helping those they consider most in need -- senior citizens and families with children . The formula is straightforward : With donations , volunteers and skilled supervisors , homes get rebuilt -- and people move home . `` It 's not rocket science , '' McCartney says . `` The problems in this community are widespread , but the solutions are really simple . '' Yet this simple equation yields impressive results . The St. Bernard Project can transform a gutted house into a livable home in just eight to 12 weeks for an average cost of $ 12,000 . For residents like Aguilar , the St. Bernard Project has been a lifesaver . In the years since Katrina , he lost his job and struggled with health problems . `` I was so beaten down , '' he says . `` I was gon na blow myself away . '' When the Saint Bernard Project agreed to rebuild his home , the relief he felt was palpable . `` They saved my life . '' Watch Aguilar describe his own Katrina experience » . To date , more than 6,000 volunteers have worked with the St. Bernard Project , enabling more than 120 families to move back into their homes . McCartney says every house her group rebuilds has an impact on the community as a whole . `` Once you get one family back , other families are willing to come back as well , '' she says . `` There 's a very nice ripple effect . '' McCartney and Rosenburg plan to keep working until all the homes in St. Bernard Parish are rebuilt . `` We 're here until we work ourselves out of a job , '' she says . Watch McCartney describe her turning point while volunteering in New Orleans » . For Aguilar , McCartney is n't just rebuilding homes -- she 's restoring a sense of hope to the community . `` Little by little , one house at a time , we 'll be back , '' he says . `` I feel it . I know it . ''
St. Bernard left Washington Parish , once home to more than 6,000 , virtually uninhabitable . Liz McCartney moved from Washington to St. Bernard to help rebuild homes . She and her boyfriend started the Saint Bernard Project , focusing on seniors , families .