Dec 7, 2007 | 7:39 pm
Flood
For those of you not in the Pacific Northwest, even you have heard of the floods that have devastated many of our communities. One town, Vernonia, already reinventing itself after floods in 1996 and a diminishing timber economy, has had families displaced from homes, schools not schooling, a medical office shut down.
The community is gratefully receiving support. The American Red Cross is engaged, the army reserves helped with rescues and stabilization of the community, and food drives and money are being sent in from around the region.
And yet, you wouldn’t know any of this is happening an hour away from me. Here at the intersection of Or-217 and I-5, people continue to rush about with their daily life. There are banks to visit, calls to make, children to get to the sitter. It’s as though we had a small interruption with rain and wind, and getting to Seattle might be a challenge with I-5 being shut down 90 minutes to the north (another flood devastated location is Centralia Washington).
You know, I’m grateful that I’m healthy, warm, sheltered, and fed. I have love, family, friends, a solid career, and a wonderful partner. I wish I could just drop what I have to go help those whose lives have been affecting by the floods. I’ve become quite attached to what I have though. And because of that I’m almost embarrassed that I really don’t have the resources to just go be of service to most in need.
I am going to do what I can by asking you to help me donate money to the area. The food banks will need help, the schools will need help, the whole town is going to need help. Please, give what you can. Be grateful for what you have, and give what you can.
I’ll be teaching a class, “Resolution Revolution” on December 27 at 6:30PM in Portland. All profits will be going directly to a Vernonia non-profit organization. Please contact me if you would like to participate in the class, or help get the word out. The more people who attend, the more we can help Vernonia.
Truly Yours,
Joseph Lyons