There is no hint Evie de la Vega has just been through the most traumatic experience
of her life.
Her glowing smile gives no indication she's less than a week removed from seeing
her grandparents for the first time since Hurricane Katrina ravaged the city
of New Orleans. But those traits explain, more than any words can, why de la
Vega, a 22-year-old senior, is captain of Stetson's women's cross country team.
Tony Jones of the Daytona Beach News Journal chronicled the harrowing experiences the de la
Vega family went through during those days trapped in the New Orleans Superdome
and how Evie herself found solace in running to keep fear and worry from conquering
her thoughts.