Two religious sisters who stayed with elderly residents of their facility in New Orleans:

Sister Tekakwitha Vega and Sister Carolyn Leslie didn’t want to be in New Orleans when Katrina hit. But when 19 residents of a senior-citizens apartment building refused to leave, they stayed, too.

"We knew that if we left them, at least seven of the residents would have died," said Sister Tekakwitha, 77, administrator of the five-story Delille Independent Living for the Elderly.

Many of the residents suffered from diabetes, others had heart problems; they ranged in age from the 70s to almost 90.

"We know we are elderly, too, but we can still keep going," added Sister Carolyn, 76.