NEW ORLEANS– Sister Mary Lou Specha and Sister Julie Marsh run the Hotel Hope shelter, and right now they have hope in their hearts for a Mardi Gras celebration of sorts.

These nuns from the Sisters of Presentation from Dubuque, Iowa love Mardi Gras so much, so they want to turn their home into a Mardi Gras float.

“We want our house to represent a lantern because we have been through a dark year, but we know light is still possible,” Sister Mary Lou said.

These nuns even plan on throwing beads out of their windows to cars passing by.

“This will be a way where we can social distance, have a safe Mardi Gras and still participate even in this crazy pandemic,” Sister Mary Lou said.

In order to turn their Central City home on S. Saratoga into a float, they will team up with the Krewe of Red Beans which hires local artists to design the float homes. The nuns must raise $10-thousand dollars, so they’ve turned to Go Fund Me to help.

“We are almost at $7-thousand dollars, which is unbelievable. We only need $3-thousand more,” she said.

They’ve got faith that the spirit of Mardi Gras will shine through.

For a link to their Go Fund Me page, click HERE.