[18401] in APO-L
Tornado Relief
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Elliot Echlov)
Thu Mar 5 00:32:39 1998
Date: Thu, 5 Mar 1998 00:30:10 -0500
Reply-To: Elliot Echlov <cfknights@INFOAVE.NET>
From: Elliot Echlov <cfknights@INFOAVE.NET>
To: Multiple recipients of list APO-L <APO-L@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU>
I've been asked to forward the following from an alum in Orlando. If
you're going to be there during spring break and are looking for a service
opportunity, this could be it.
========================
Brothers,
I wanted to tell y'all about the amazing Saturday that I had! This is
kinda lengthy, but humor me and read it anyway.
On the night of February 22, several tornadoes ripped thru central
Florida. Forty-one people were killed, hundreds injured, and over 3,000
homes were damaged or destroyed. I got a few brothers together last
Saturday to assist in the areas damaged. We called a lot a places before we
had an agency to assist. We found one that needed help moving debris. So
we got gloves and trash bags, and headed to Kissimmee, 1 of the worst
damaged places. It took about an hour to get there. By the time we got
there it was raining and lightning, so the agency didn't need us to move
debris. We offered to help in other ways. Guess what? They had so many
volunteers that they didn't need our help! Isn't that great? Being
turned away because they already had too many volunteers!
We then decided to travel to another damaged area: Winter Garden, west
of Orlando. When we got to an apartment complex that was directly hit, we
decided that we needed a bathroom break before helping out. We went to the
nearby shopping center. In the shopping center was a Salvation Army
temporary warehouse. We asked them if they needed help, they said yes! We
then spent the next 5 hours unloading donations off trucks, shuttling it to
the warehouse, sorting it (clothes, canned goods, toys, etc), putting it in
bags and boxes, filling up carts for the folks who needed the food and
clothing, and pushing the carts out to their cars.
It's been a long time since I've been able to assist in a project that
was so emotionally rewarding. I was amazed at how truly grateful everyone
was for our help. One lady told me that she was lucky. I thought, you've
got to be kidding me....you've lost so much. Then she said "We're all
alive, no one was injured. God directed us to this Salvation Army where we
got food, clothes, and bedding. I feel really blessed. We are so lucky."
Wow. She lost so much, yet she was so
grateful for what she had.
...
I am amazed and impressed with this community...the outpouring of
support. I also learned that one of the things that needs to be donated
more are cleaning supplies. The warehouse had lots of clothes, but not much
in the way of mops, brooms, laundry soap, bleach, etc. And I had to smile
at the 1 item that was donated: dishwasher detergent. I'm sure they meant
well.
They also need people to help. There are several places to find out
where the help is needed. The Heart of Florida United Way has a website
that lists the agencies in need. They can be reached at
www.hfuw.org/special2.htm or call 407-896-4483. The Orlando Sentinel has a
page that shows where all the damage is. You can access it at
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/storm/damage.htm. You can also call the
Red Cross at 1-800-HELP NOW to donate time or money. Please specify where
you want any donations to go. If you have any time available, please help
out. Believe me, this devastating event is going to take
several weeks and millions of dollars to clean up.
Yesterday made me really appreciate my dry apartment, my hot shower,
and my perishable foods. I'm stiff and sore, but it was worth it. It's
scary to think that it was strictly by chance that it was their home
damaged and not mine.
Yours in Leadership, Friendship, and Service,
Lisa Clendenning
Advisor- Psi Omega chapter, University of Central Florida
President- Greater Orlando Alumni Association of APO
========================
A group of alumni and brothers from Psi Omega will be going to Winter
Garden on Friday to help out. If you want to join them, contact Lisa at
advisorlisa@hotmail.com.
2
E -- http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/1123
Boycott shampoo! Demand the REAL poo.
