Spitz: America's got talent, and Katrina

Sometimes America gets it right.

Look, I was as shocked as anybody when the winner of "America's Got Talent" was revealed Wednesday night.

Michael Grimm? Seriously? The affable singer from Mississippi beat out 10-year-old opera phenom Jackie Evancho, the Blue Man-esque Fighting Gravity troupe, and the lavishly theatrical Prince Poppycock?

What were TV viewers thinking when they cast their votes?

Yes, "American Idol" voters picked Taylor Hicks over Katharine McPhee, Kris Allen over Adam Lambert, Lee DeWyze over Crystal Bowersox, Ruben Studdard over Clay Aiken, and a hip-hop dance group topped YouTube sensation Susan Boyle on "Britain's Got Talent."

But Evancho is beyond amazing.

Then again, she's 10, and 10 isn't exactly the right time to win $1 million plus a show in Las Vegas.

Grimm, on the other hand, is 30-something, has been working on his music career since he was younger than Evancho, and saw the home of his grandparents, who raised him, destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. He's a singer and guitar player who's both talented and humble, and the kind of guy who would propose to his longtime girlfriend on Ellen DeGeneres' talk show the day after his victory.

Plus, Grimm's win makes folks in Mendon and Wayland very happy.

It's "something positive for Waveland for sure," said Mendon Fire and Police Chief Ernest Horn of the Mississippi area that Mendon and Wayland have been lending a hand to since the hurricane. "Hopefully, as he tours around the country, people will ask him about Katrina.

"I think he could be a good spokesman for Waveland."

Cindy Lombardo, a member of Wayland to Waveland's steering committee, agrees.

"Michael's win might elevate awareness about Waveland and the need to continue to help that area recover and rebuild," the Wayland resident said.

Since the 2005 hurricane leveled the Mississippi city of about 6,600 residents near Biloxi, groups from Mendon and Wayland have visited numerous times. Emergency responders, including Horn, went to offer assistance shortly after Katrina hit. Youth and church groups, adult volunteers and members of the Wayland to Waveland partnership have made multiple trips to help with the ongoing recovery.

With Grimm's televised vow to build a new home in the Waveland region for his grandparents, Tom and Laura Butters, America might get a view of what Lombardo has seen.

"Of all the communities on the (Gulf) Coast, Waveland is far behind in rebuilding," she said.

"They're still in difficult times. It's still pretty difficult down there," said Horn.

Not that there isn't continuing need in other places, including New Orleans.

"We still have no problem finding a house that's been gutted, and it's just been sitting there for five years," said Terry Combs, a Framingham contractor who will be going to New Orleans next month with a group from the Unitarian Universalist Area Church in Sherborn.

This will be the fifth annual trip for the Sherborn church group volunteers who rebuild homes.

When people hear he's going back to New Orleans, they often ask Combs, "Isn't that all done?

"The last time down we saw a difference," he said. "We did see more hope."

But, as in Waveland, there's still a long way to go.

"In a TV show," whatever the problem, "it'll be fixed before the end of a one-hour show," Horn said. "Unfortunately, that isn't the case (in real life)."

That is why the Sherborn church is hosting a yard sale next Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., on the lawn of the Sherborn Public Library, to raise money for supplies for the October rebuilding trip.

And why Wayland to Waveland continues its fundraising efforts and programs.

"We have been supporting a volunteer group, MAP, Music, Art and Practicality, in the Bay St. Louis/Waveland area, helping this group to cultivate music and the arts with middle-school aged children," Lombardo said. After all, "it seems that the Gulf Coast has some extraordinary artistic talent."

America, or at least those who called or clicked to vote for their TV favorite, think Grimm is among that extraordinary group.

I'm happy for him, believe me, but the people I think are truly extraordinary are the Americans who realize it takes long-term, committed effort to repair catastrophic damage like Katrina's, or the Haiti earthquake or the BP oil spill.

If Grimm helps remind us of the importance of groups like Wayland to Waveland or Sherborn's UUAC volunteers, this is definitely a time America got it right.

Julia Spitz can be reached at 508-626-3968 or jspitz@cnc.com. Check milforddailynews.com for the Spitz Bits blog.