Flood Them with Love wrapping up after 2 years, 350 families

Karla Goettel

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After two years, Flood Them with Love is closing our doors.

We are still completing six rebuilding projects and helping the city with an erosion project in addition to other loose ends, but it is just time to bow out.

In my wildest dreams, I never thought we would grow to this extent. On Christmas Day 2008, three families helped five flood-impacted households. Today we can count 350 families that we helped.

This grassroots effort grew from individuals who believed that volunteers helping flood survivors with immediate needs was important.

I especially want to recognize Wendee Deal, our warehouse manager, and Susan Elliott-Bryan, our treasurer. When these women joined me in May 2009, our work exploded. I also want to thank Horizons for asking us to be part of its flood recovery team and to Bills' Bros. Furniture and Ogden & Adams Lumber for being our longest and most-devoted business partners. I have four pages of business partners I could list!

I want to thank our many wonderful volunteers, the home intake workers (Pat Nielsen) and the warehouse team, including the Tallman family, flood survivors who were among our most dedicated volunteers.

Finally, thank you to the hundreds of donors who helped us fill a 6,400-square-foot warehouse with everything for a home and for the hundreds of thousands of dollars that were raised from the area and across the United States.

I will always believe our visits to flood survivors in their homes was the key to our success. As one family said, “You not only helped us with material and financial needs, you acknowledged our losses.”

I urge the community to keep remembering our neighbors in need. The flood is not over and many are still struggling. Donate to our food banks. Adopt a family for Christmas. Love your neighbors! Thank you!

Karla Goettel of Cedar Rapids is founder of Flood Them with Love. Comments: goettel@mchsi.com. More information about the nonprofit organization is online at http://floodthemwithlove.com/.