Updates as of June 7th

Again sorry for the delay.

Cedar 4 wrapped up their time in Hot Springs, SD and we accomplished quite a bit.

• Benches painted
• Boardwalk installed
• Nature trail mowed and graveled
• Invasive species removed (Canadian Thistle)
• Barbed Wire Removed
• Buck and Pole fence assembled and placed (1000 feet)

The last week we were there an archaeologist came from Custer State Park and took us around the Whitney Preserve and showed us different sites that the Native Americans once inhabited. He showed us rock art, tipi rings (rings of rocks they used to keep their tipi's in place) and other artifacts. It was pretty cool that all these artifacts were so close to us and we had no idea.

We found out our next project for Round 3 which is scheduled to be in Chisago City, Minnesota. Cedar 4 will be working with the Park and Rec on a campground that they acquired that has been closed for 6 years due to the previous organization's inability to fund the property. We were getting all geared up to head out on July 18th after mid year training when our Team Leader called to tell us that we were being pulled for Disaster Relief and would be leaving for Joplin Missouri on July 11th.


July 11th came with 130+ winds in Vinton, IA which brought the entire Corps and Iowa Braille & Site saving school staff and students to the basement tunnels for shelter of the alleged tornado. It turned out that it was not a tornado however the damage was severe. The roof of the main building was torn off, my ceiling caved into my room, one of the dorms completely flooded with rooms having waist high water and all of the residents belongings ruined.










Everyone was safe just a few destroyed personal items however our trip to Joplin was delayed as the entire Corps spent July 11th cleaning up the campus. Remains of the roof, glass from the windows, and the numerous trees that had fallen down was Class 17's main priority that day. Working in the hot sun all day we cleaned up a good part of the campus. Due to no electricity the entire Corps spent the night in Cedar Rapids. The 5 teams deployed to Missouri on the 12th while the rest of the Corps spent the day providing disaster relief to the town of Vinton. Some places are still without power in Vinton however the campus is being run by generators.

We are now in Joplin, MO with Cedar 1 and Oak 3 working alongside FEMA. We are doing Case Management with Survivors of the Joplin Tornado from May 22nd. The section that was directly hit by the mile wide tornado is devastated for miles. Some lost everything and even after 2 months later are still struggling to get back on their feet. I am glad that we are here to help in any way that we can however it is going to be a very difficult project on an emotional level. This is the first project that my team has worked directly with individuals and the fact that it is due to a huge disaster is unfortunate. We will be here until the end of July and head back to Vinton on August 1st. We are still unsure about how long we will be there due to the fact that we missed mid year training. We will be there for a few days at least to debrief on our South Dakota project and get briefed on our Minnesota project.












That is all for now and I will keep up with my blog at least once a week!

I promise!

Katy