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Laurie and Peter Yaukey: Big
Dreams in the Big Easy
I have always loved shopping for my kids. What mother doesn't? My first
was born twenty-six years ago, and he is now married and in graduate
school. Since then I have had two more boys, now thirteen and five, and
(finally!) my baby girl, now three. My husband Peter is a professor at the
University of New Orleans, and studies environmental stuff, especially wild
birds, and most recently the aftermath of the hurricane. I am a native of
New Orleans, and was the second-youngest of seven kids. As a kid, I
wished for clothes that were not hand-me-downs. All the more reason I love
dressing my kids in adorable stuff now!
On the beach
Before Katrina hit, we used to breed Maltese and Shih Tzu puppies. This
provided a second income for me as a stay at home mother of four. Our kids grew
up seeing puppies day in and day out- the Life of Riley for a kid! But after
Peter had to scramble to find an available rental van as the city was closing
down, rig it to transport dogs, and then care for them in a makeshift shelter
for a month, we realized how vulnerable we and our dogs were to hurricanes.
After we returned, we knew we could never put ourselves and our dogs through
another evacuation. We began to think about other sources of income. At the
same time, with so few stores open in the city, I began buying clothes for our
kids on eBay. Soon I realized, if all these folks can sell clothes on eBay, why
can't I? I dove in head first, creating Four Precious Ones, and in a few months
I was a Power Seller. Then Katrina hit us a second time: although we had not
flooded, we started getting ill. We eventually traced this to hidden mold, the
consequence of wind-driven rain permeating our walls during the storm. We had
to abandon our newly built home of three years, and its contents, and found
ourselves in the same homeless position that so many New Orleanians had been in
for the past year. We moved into a Marriott for two months, and then into a
rental home. We had no room for our dogs, so we began placing them. Of course,
eBay had to be put on hold for several months, making us effectively start the
business over from scratch. We are finally back into it, with more listings
than ever, and attended eBay Live! in Boston- talk about motivating, it was
great! Peter is even talking about starting an eBay business selling bird
feeders and supplies, and offering his expertise to people wanting help
attracting and identifying backyard birds. (This is Peter inserting a note- I
try to get Laurie to sell her gumbo on eBay- it is better than anyone's, even
Emeril's!). We have also realized how we can use our sales through eBay Works
to support charities, such as organizations helping to rebuild our city,
conserve wildlife, and of course address issues dealing with the wellfare of
children.
The Kids
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