Chief of Staff
When Hurricane Katrina approached New Orleans, Liz Ziegler was serving as Program Coordinator for Tulane Football in Athletics while also raising two young children on the Northshore. She recalls anxiously watching the “spaghetti graphs” of possible storm paths, torn between safeguarding her family and standing her post for Tulane.
For the Football program, the evacuation was a monumental challenge: moving an entire team, sheltering them, feeding them, and even managing simple but essential needs like laundry. “Communication with family and friends was nonexistent for the most part for a while,” Liz recalls. Families outside the area were left reliant on frightening news reports.
Despite the hardships, Liz emphasizes the resilience of Athletics: “Athletes, coaches and staff connected with athletics in general typically operate in a cohesive team-first approach. I can’t think of a single person that didn’t just do what needed to be done for the sake of the group and the good of all.” Tulane Football played all of its games on the road that year. It was grueling for the student-athletes, but it also gave them focus and solidarity during a time of deep personal worry.
Amid the chaos, Liz carries with her moments of kindness that still stand out. With communication lines down, she remembers a stranger’s act that bridged the impossible gap between her and her family: “Out of nowhere a land line rang where I was hunkered down with a large group. A complete stranger was on the other end. I frantically asked the stranger to please call my elderly mother in Pennsylvania to say her daughter and grandchildren were safe. He delivered the message. When I finally spoke to my mother weeks later, she said it was the greatest relief of her life.”
Her story is also tied to her late brother, William Henry Devlin, who served as a first responder with the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office during Katrina. “He saved lives even risking his own to do so. Recently he passed away and among his personal possessions he had a Tulane Ave. street sign with a picture of the eye of Katrina. His name is William Henry Devlin. He was a longtime supporter of Tulane University Athletics and retired at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.”
As the community marks 20 years since Katrina, Liz’s message to her fellow Tulanians is one of hope: “While Katrina is a vivid memory for all of us, I hope the last 20 years have been more good than bad for each of you and have helped diminish any bad memories and highlighted the good ones.”
