Photo by of Washington, left, by Stacy Starr
Imagine moving halfway across the country, away from your hometown and a large, supportive family, all on your own, chasing your dream and a free education. The bumps in adapting to a new lifestyle, a new team, a new coach; the homesickness that every out-of-state freshman feels when they come to Long Beach State. Now imagine, on top off all of that—which in itself can be enough to send a young student packing—imagine that your hometown is underwater, your home destroyed, and the family you love completely out of contact for a month and a half. You’re imagining Naomi Washington’s freshman year at Long Beach State.
A few days before she and her team prepare to make the journey back to her hometown of New Orleans, Washington reflected on how tumultuous that first year was, and how much it means to her to finally play before a hometown crowd.
The news of the impending hurricane reached her, when she was still just 17, in her dorm at Long Beach State; like most natives of the city, she shrugged it off. There had been hurricane warnings before—usually a few per year. And they never amounted to anything. “It’s like the boy who cried wolf,” she said. “You go, ‘Oh, it’s just another Category Five.'” Washington stayed in Long Beach, and her family, like so many of the city’s residents, stayed in their home, determined to weather yet another storm.
When the levees broke, it was obvious that this time was different, and Washington was stunned, and scared—her mother’s home in the Lower Ninth, where her family (including 14 brothers and sisters) was headquartered, was just a few blocks from where the water came through. She says they waded through neck-high water, and were lucky to get out when they did. The house was completely destroyed, down to the ground.
All that would have been hard enough to deal with—but for a month-and-a-half, Washington didn’t even have that much info, as her family was unable to get in contact with her. “You couldn’t even dial the 504 area code at all,” she said. “You couldn’t dial in, they couldn’t dial out. They vanished—it was a real emotional strain. I was a freshman, out here with no family.” Fortunately, her family did turn up, safe and sound—with a long road of rebuilding ahead of them.
Over the last few years, the city, and the Washington family, has rebuilt much of what was lost. One of Washington’s sisters has helped, starting a company that’s helped rebuild houses in the Lower Ninth. Naomi has transformed from a terrified freshman to an All-American senior captain for her team—but of all the places she’s led the ‘Niners in the last year and a half, none has been as exciting as leading them home. “Brian [Gimmillaro, head coach of the 49ers] always promises out-of-state players that we’ll get to go home and play at least once,” she said. “The last meeting we had last season, I walked into his office and said, ‘So we’re playing in New Orleans, right?’ And he said, ‘Of course!’ and got them on the phone right away.”
The exuberant Washington, whose family has never seen her play for Long Beach (“Not even on TV,” she said, since she was injured during their televised match against Cal Poly), called her mother and siblings immediately, and told them to cancel all their plans for the Fall. “I’m giving you 9 months notice,” she said. “I don’t care what else is going on—everybody had better be there.” The result? Her whole family, including all 14 siblings, all 33 nieces and nephews, and who-knows-how-many cousins and old friends, will all be there for Long Beach’s three matches. “Cheering for Long Beach State,” she said. “That’s a given.”
For the 49ers, it will be a welcome (and enormous) cheering section on the road. For Washington, it will be a homecoming she’s wanted, and needed, since the hurricane hit—the first time her family, who have since rebuilt their home in the Lower Ninth, will have a chance to see her in the gold and black. “I waited a long time for this moment to come,” she said. “I’ve waited four seasons.”