SEVEN SWANS A SWIMMING
Both my hubby and I grew up in very small towns, and we lived and worked in small towns our whole lives. We loved the close-knit, neighborly feel of small towns -- a place where even though everybody knows your business, everybody was also willing to lend a hand when times got tough. So when we moved to Fargo in June of 2008, we were a little tentative about the city. I know, I know, Fargo isn't what I'd call a "city" either, but compared to Hulett or Beulah or Deadwood… it was a HUGE metropolis! We had a few friends and some family in town, but it just didn't feel like "home" to us for the first few months. Sure, the people were nice enough and there were plenty of opportunities for us here. But still, it didn't have that neighborly feel that we were used to. We struggled, wondering if we had made the right decision to uproot our lives and come out to this bitterly cold and isolated community out in the middle of the northern plains. Had we made mistake?
Then, March 2009 hit.
It had been a hard and snowy winter, and the flat land East of the Missouri just couldn't hold all the runoff once the weather warmed in the spring. If you paid attention to any 24-hour news channel during that time, you would have seen images and heard stories of how a devastating flood was about to wipe out the Fargo-Moorhead area. So the citizens were called up to help with the waters that were quickly headed our way...
And my goodness, how they responded! People came in droves to help sandbag - in the wind, the snow, the cold, and at all hours and even from other towns - dedicated to saving this town. Farmers, doctors, teachers, businessmen, adults and children, people from all walks of life quickly forgot their differences and banded together with a common goal: to accomplish something that seemed so daunting and unattainable. Strangers helping strangers with no motive other than to HELP because help was needed. It was simply astounding. In a matter of just a few short days, these everyday heroes showed up to fill millions of sandbags, save hundreds of homes, and touched thousands of lives. They quite literally SAVED FARGO.
It was a terrifying couple of weeks. The sound of the national guard choppers flying overhead and sirens wailing through the streets 24x7 made the city sound like a war zone. The local news channels ran flood coverage day and night. Nobody knew if the dikes and contingent dikes would hold. The city shut down while the citizens held their breath, preparing for the worst but praying for the best. I remember watching the 9 o'clock news one night and watched in amazement as one of the anchors held up a photo of her own home to the camera -- it was nearly underwater -- and yet, she was still in front of the camera doing her job because her community needed her.
Being 7 months pregnant at the time, I couldn't do much more than "woman the fort" while my colleagues went out and sandbagged and helped where they were needed. My husband was one of those able bodies out in the trenches who saw some pretty miraculous things happen during that time. I watched him day after day go to work for a few hours in the morning, then head out and bag until midnight. The exhaustion on his face after two weeks was nothing compared to the emotion in his voice as he described the people who were in the trenches with him. Like the elderly woman who refused to stand around and watch while strangers put up a fortress around her home - and stood out there helping folks 60+ years her junior toss the 40-pound sandbags up onto the dikes. The inspiring stories he came home with are something we will never forget.
I still get a lump in my throat when I think about it. About how lucky we were to not have had a drop of water in our home. About how lucky we were to be surrounded by friends and neighbors who made sacrifices for the benefit of others. Seeing that, being touched by that kind of selflessness, left an impression on our family. We realized that whether the place you live in has 1,400 or 140,000 or 14,000,000, there are people that can and will make a difference when they are called to action. It was a turning point -- we knew we had found "home".
FirstLink organized a veritable army of volunteers for the flood-fighting. Their organization trained volunteers to man a call center hotline for folks who wanted to give their time, but also a place where those in danger of losing their homes could place a call for help. They worked with community leaders to determine where need was, and coordinated efforts to get the resources where they were needed. It was incredible how quickly and efficiently this organization pulled together enough volunteers and resources to accomplish the huge feat of holding back the raging Red River. I was impressed by FirstLink to say the least, but after researching more about their group and what they do, I feel even more strongly about supporting their cause.
So on this 7th day of Christmas, I give my support to FirstLink because they kept us all from "Swimming"
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