Charles City community sends trailer full of supplies to derecho victims; will do it again

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

The tradition of neighbors helping neighbors in time of need was proven with a flourish last week when Charles City residents, businesses and others helped fill a large trailer and a pickup full of food and supplies for the people affected by the derecho storm in the Cedar Rapids area.

It also showed how quickly things can come together, as the project was suggested at a Charles City Rotary Club meeting Monday noon, supplies were collected on Thursday and driven down to Marion on Friday.

“I am just dumbfounded how much stuff came in, just in that short period of time,” said Rotary Club President Ann Troge.

Club members had many examples of generosity.

Linda Klemesrud said she was shopping for supplies in Hy-Vee with another club member when someone saw their Rotary shirts and walked up and handed them a check to be used for baby supplies.

Randy Heitz said he was shopping and a woman handed him two $100 gift cards, to Fareway and Hy-Vee, saying, “This is why I keep these, for special events.”

Bill Feller said he was buying supplies at Ace Hardware and employees loaded up a wheelbarrow with other supplies and said, “Take all this with you.”

Cathy Rottinghaus said twice while she was working at the trailer last Thursday, a Hy-Vee employee wheeled a cart full of supplies across the parking lot, the gifts of anonymous shoppers who filled up carts for those affected by the storm while they were doing their own shopping.

Hy-Vee, Fareway and other businesses offered discounts on supplies purchased for the trip. In all, more than $1,900 in cash was donated to be used to buy supplies, with more likely still in the mail.

Troge said, “I am grateful to those who went shopping, because it did help local merchants. Because of many people walking many miles, a lot of the money did get spent so the trailer was filled.”

Club member Chris Garden spent part of his 55th birthday on Friday along with club member Dennis Donovan driving the supplies to Marion. Garden also donated use of the trailer and pickup.

The club worked through Michelle Bell, a member of the Linn County Rotary Club and a past Rotary district governor, to come up with a list of needed supplies and deliver them to Marion.

Bell had given them directions to a facility being used in Marion to store and sort donations, but the roads there were blocked, Garden said.

“We found our way around into Marion,” he said. “There were trees down everywhere. A lot of them were snapped halfway off. A lot of damaged houses.”

He said when they arrived at the facility and found Bell she was ready to cry when they opened the trailer and she saw what they brought.

“It was really emotional,” Garden said. “I said, ‘You think that’s going to bother you, wait until I tell you we have about 50 cases of Girl Scout cookies.’ They were pretty elated.”

ONE MORE TIME

The Rotary Club will again be filling up the trailer full of supplies for storm victims in the Cedar Rapids area.

The trailer will be available from noon to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 27, at the south end of the city parking lot in front of Hy-Vee, across the street from Immaculate Conception Church.

Garden and others will drive the supplies to Marion on Friday morning.

Items needed include bread, peanut butter, jelly, instant potatoes, canned or boxed goods or any other shelf-stable food.

Also baby wipes, formula and diapers.

Also water, toiletries, large trash bags, toilet paper, paper towels, batteries and feminine products.