I’m ashamed to admit, I wasn’t moved to tears right away.
Maybe it’s because I don’t live there anymore. Maybe it’s because I have been desensitized by all the news coverage from other natural disasters over the years. Maybe it’s because I’m too much of a stoic Finn.
But although I wasn’t affected by the flash flooding that happened in Michigan’s Copper Country on June 17, 2018, the videos and pictures of raging torrents of water too close to the houses, streets that looked like old crumpled tar paper, and cars and trucks buried up the windows in mountains of rubble and mud, stuck with me. I had read headlines like this before, “Flash Floods Wreak Havoc.” “Houses and Businesses Destroyed.” But unlike other news articles, I recognized those places. It was a morbid fascination; I couldn’t look away.
Facebook posts, like the following from Gowtham, were showing up everywhere. (Click here to see Pics by Gowtham, if it doesn’t show up below.)
Didn’t Affect Me
My family was a little farther north, away from the brunt of the storm. They had gotten an inch or two of rain and some wind, and had sustained little damage—just minor basement flooding which is not so unusual. Well, maybe unusual for June, but the basement always got a little water in it from the winter snow runoff, so it’s not like they couldn’t deal with it.
I was supposed to be working on a website for a client. I didn’t have time for perusing the pictures on social media. I was in California now, super far away. It’s not like there was anything I could do. The flooding was bad, but it didn’t affect me…
…and that’s when it hit me. My client was there, in the thick of it. I had just had a meeting with her two weeks ago in the coffee shop that now had a river in front of it instead of a road. Two weeks ago, I had driven past the Taco Bell sign that was now laying uprooted in the sunken parking lot. I had crossed the bridge over a pristine blue canal that was now running brown with mud and debris. I had walked down the sidewalks where there were now sinkholes big enough to swallow a car.
This video compilation by Brockit, Inc., says it all. (Click here to see the video by Brockit, Inc., if it doesn’t show up below.)
Didn’t affect me? That was my hometown. I grew up there, went to college there. Lots of people—literally hundreds of people—I knew still lived there. In fact, the woman with the kid in the news story above was my college professor.
Didn’t affect me? My community was crying for help and I wanted to turn my back on them and pretend that there was nothing I could do.
Didn’t affect me? I was starting to have dreams about washed-out roads and children whose homes were destroyed.
Didn’t affect me? A little boy died. He was my youngest brother’s age. They lived fourteen miles apart.
Heck, yes, this affected me. Then I couldn’t stop crying. I sent $100 to my cousin, who was headed to the store to buy some supplies to donate. She spent it on pasties to feed the hungry volunteers who were performing the manual labor I was too far away to help with myself.
But it didn’t feel like enough.
$50 Million and Rising
The local news reported that the damage was assessed at $50 million. Fifty million dollars is a whole lot of money, especially for that area of the United States. The entire Upper Peninsula of Michigan has under 100,000 people (source: Wikipedia). Houghton County, which includes the area most affected by the storm, is even smaller. With a population of 36,565 people and a median household income of $39,080, (Source: Datausa) they are completely unprepared to pay such an exorbitant amount to rebuild.
The total damage is even higher. The $50 million only included damage to infrastructure like County and local roads, municipal water, sewage and drain systems. It did not include damage to State assets such as MDOT roads and DNR trails, or the cost of damage to individual homes and businesses.
The median property value in Houghton County is $96,100, which may not sound like a lot compared to where I live now, but a lot of property was damaged. It was estimated that 151 structures suffered minor damage, 70 had major damage, 9 were inaccessible, and 4 were completely destroyed.
As for the recreation trails that bring tourists in droves, especially winter snowmobilers, there were 92 minor washouts, 28 medium washouts, 15 large washouts and 15 massive washouts. (source: Upper Michigan Source)
Unprecedented
I was just telling my boyfriend that the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) is the safest place to live because the only natural disasters we get are blizzards, and as long as you have heat and a roof over your head, you just stay inside and you’re fine. Then when the blizzard is over, you go out and shovel. We don’t get earthquakes, hurricanes, or tornadoes.
We don’t have exploding volcanoes. Lake Superior is big, but there is never a tsunami danger. It’s a safe, benign, calm place to live, out in the middle of nowhere.
This flooding is unprecedented. Everyone was caught off guard, and completely unprepared for the amount of destruction it caused.
An Outpouring of Support
The community came together after the storm. Donations flooded the drop-off centers, and volunteers flocked to move rubble out of the streets, dig out cars, and clean the gobs of mud out of their neighbors’ houses. They dropped everything to volunteer their time and energy to turn the community back right-side-up. (Click here to see the Facebook post by Brockit, Inc., of volunteers helping after the flood, if it doesn’t show up below.)
Just a few days into the clean-up efforts, a regional disaster coordinator told the volunteers that that they were two weeks ahead of any recovery effort that disaster officials have ever seen.
But just because the (literal) storm was over, and donations were coming in, and people were recovering, didn’t mean that they no longer needed help. In fact, even after (maybe especially after) the initial work is done and the volunteers go back to their regular day jobs, support is still needed.
I’m Just One Little Person Who Lives Far Away
I wanted to help more, but thought, “I’m just one little person who lives far away. There’s nothing I can do.”
Have you ever had that thought? I have, and it has stopped me from helping before.
This time, I decided it didn’t matter. Yes, I was one little person, but I was someone who could help. I had to try. I had to do something. But what?
“What if I have a fund raiser?”
I was plagued by doubts. I’ve never held a fund raiser before. I don’t know the first thing about it. I told myself, “I’m 2,500 miles away, surrounded by people who don’t even know that the UP exists; why would they care about it?”
But the thought wouldn’t go away.
So I’m going to have a couple fund raising events.
I’m going to have a painting party in July. I’m asking you to participate and contribute. All proceeds will be donated to the 2018 Houghton County Flood Relief Fund, held by the Portage Health Foundation, as described here.
Why Should You Help?
- Because you care about me
- Because you care about the UP
- Because even if it didn’t affect you, it affects you
Are You Just One Little Person (Who Lives Far Away)?
Even if you are just one little person, and even if you live far away, you can lend a helping hand.
How You Can Help
- Tell your story. How were you affected by the flood? Doesn’t matter if you still live in the UP or not. Doesn’t even matter if you have never lived there. Maybe you have traveled there, or maybe learning about this flood struck a chord about something else you want to share. Let me know, and I’ll publish your story on my blog. I’ll be posting stories right up to the fund raising events.
- Donate something to the auction. I’m collecting donations for the auction. Details are still being worked out.
- Participate by painting. Come to the painting party to unleash your inner artist. (On September 15; Details below. Note, date has been updated, due to a family emergency at the time of the originally scheduled event)
- Participate by buying something at the auction. Place a bid at the auction and go home with something amazing! (A potential option. More details coming.)
The important thing is to do something. Prove that one little person can make a difference.
Participate by Painting
A Painting Party—Details
“Every sunset brings the promise of a new dawn.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Venue
1 John Street Sand City, CA 93955
Date (Date has been updated, due to a family emergency at the time of the originally scheduled event) Saturday, September 15, 2018
Time 1:00-4:00 pm, Pacific Time
Event Description“Beautiful Sunsets” Painting Party: Come learn to paint with Evelyn Helminen. Eat snacks, drink your beverage of choice, and unleash your inner artist in a fun and supportive environment.
RSVP Spaces are limited. RSVP at this Facebook Event, or by emailing Evelyn (evelyn [at] travelingev [dot] com).
Cost A $30 suggested donation would gratefully be accepted.
If you’re looking for other ways to help, see these sites:
- http://coppercountrystrong.com/
- Buy a t-shirt
- https://www.facebook.com/CopperCountryStrong2018/
- Or buy a t-shirt here
- Or buy a hoodie
- Buy a 12″ x 16″ print of Quincy Mine
- Or buy this t-shirt
Note, this blog entry originally appeared on my other website, which is no longer in service, travelingev.com. It is posted here as a sample of my writing.
Update: I raised $2,000 through this event, which I sent to the Houghton County Flood Relief Fund.
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