The Resource Staging Center (multi-agency warehouse) here in Calhoun (the old Big Lots, as it’s known locally) is up and functioning smoothly. It has transitioned from a purely warehouse operation to a combination warehouse/distribution center at the request of Gordon County officials. The distribution center being operated at the Sonoraville School Recreation Center was closed on Feb. 7, and all assets were transferred to our facility on Friday, Feb. 8, when we began distributing from here. Now all donations are being handled by us from this one location. Goods came to us on Friday in two school-bus loads and one Sheriff’s Dept. truckload, and were unloaded by 26 young, strong members of the Sonoraville High School weightlifting class.
Emergency manager Richard Cooper asked us late that Friday afternoon if we would mind working Saturday to serve the people who still needed help. We agreed, but most of our volunteers had already left. As we didn’t anticipate much business, this didn’t cause us much concern, because most of our management staff was still there, and we could handle any clients who came for help.
What we didn’t anticipate was the huge influx of donated goods that arrived that day! We had been told that if there wasn’t much business by noon, we could lock up and go home. Around 11:30, trucks and cars and pickups began to appear loaded with donated goods. We were quickly inundated! A call went to GCA for help, and a sizable group of students shortly appeared and began sorting goods. By the end of the day, nearly all of the things had been sorted and inventoried. This allowed our staff to concentrate on serving the clients who also began arriving for help at about the same time. The students from GCA saved the day for us!
That Friday saw visits from several dignitaries, including Charlie English, director of GA Emergency Management (GEMA), who had heard about our operation from GEMA Region 6 director Vickie Thompson, and wanted to see it for himself. We have been getting regular visits from GEMA officials, bringing other EMA directors from other counties to “see how donations management should be done!” Yesterday we were visited by three people from Whitfield County, asking if we could come and teach their people about donations management. We replied in the affirmative and are working that out with GEMA at the present.
Donations have continued to come in at a fairly consistent rate until now. We received a semi-load of supplies from the Church of Christ that was rated at $120,000. However, donations have come in from local people in bags and boxes, in pickups and cars, with all kinds of things, and the total amount of goods received from the public have now exceeded in value what the Church of Christ delivered. Our present inventory is rated at $271,494.
One nice thing about distributing is the people one meets and the stories you hear—stories of miracles, of heartbreak, of despair, of hope.
ACS DR has helped a lady who was voted “Teacher of the Year” for the State of Georgia, and was in California with her family, accepting her award when the tornado came through and destroyed her home. Had they been home, they very possibly would have been killed or seriously injured. Talk about mixed feelings!
Another family has been living in their van since the place they were living in was destroyed. ACS DR was able to not only assist them with food, personal care items, cleaning products, etc., but also found them housing and medical care.
These stories repeat themselves time and again, blessing our volunteers as they go about helping others.
We have been invited to a meeting with local and state officials today to get a briefing about the situation in Gordon County, and hopefully we will have some idea when it’s over about how long we will be open here.
I will send more information as we receive it.
