Update - August 16, 2008

Dear Friend - you asked me what Iowa Yearly Meeting (C) was doing, and I told you that we would be meeting in the near future and I would let you know. Based upon Whittier Monthly Meetings concerns brought to the Yearly Meeting, IYM(C) decided to make a one time donation of $2,500 dollars in care of Whittier Monthly Meeting for flood relief in Cedar Rapids. In addition, the P&SC committee made separate donations to the Catherine McAuley Center in Cedar Rapids for flood relief.

Another big issue is that 2 schools are completely uninhabitable) also happen to be schools that service that most vulnerable: one school was the magnet schools for disabled kids in the district, and both were the center of their communities. (94+% qualify for free lunch in both. They also were the only 2 schools in the district on a year round schedule, so merging the students into other schools presents an additional challenge) In each case, the school was the very place in the neighborhood that helped keep the families together. There has been a big hue and cry from the parents with the plan to split up the student population, and bus them to different schools in the district. Since the schools themselves offered the before & after school care, etc, this (understandably) also has a number of parents very upset. A group of churches have banded together to collect supplies for a number of these same families, as they are in danger of losing their kids to foster care. (apparently you can't qualify for FEMA assistance if you have either a previous conviction, OR you owe money- pretty well covers everyone, there!) Please see the main page for the address to send donations to the Iowa State Education Association Disaster Effort.

The Cedar Rapids Public Library campaign goes on. You can follow it up by all the articles in the Cedar Rapids Gazette. The librarian pointed out that nowhere else has a similar situation happened before. In Hurricane Katrina, it was New Orleans branch libraries that were lost...but this is the first time that she knows of that a MAIN library was destroyed. They are really looking for a place to even temporarily locate. (they currently have two little rooms at the local mall-)

Please email me for the flyer from Partnership for Safe Families, (since there is no web site) that is working to help the families in the school neighborhoods I just described. I know of Gloria Johnson's work, and this organization has been recommended to me by more than one person who asked for suggestions for folks who would like to help the most needy affected by the flooding. (one person I asked is a lawyer for the city of Cedar Rapids, and is very aware of who is doing what- and who is doing what, well) Please see the main page for the address for PFSF in order to send donations.

Thanks for your ongoing help in this-

love,

Deb