Sister City News
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posted Sept 13,2006
Bedford Township, Michigan Reports 8th Trip to the Pass
Last Thursday, Sept.7th, Tom Eisenmann and I made the group's 8th trip to
Pass Christian. We left Temperance at 4:00 AM and arrived in Gulf Port,
Mississippi at 2:00 am on Friday. Since nobody was up and about, we slept
for a couple of hours, had breakfast and drove into the Pass at about 8:00
AM.
We drove out by the High School, the ball fields we worked on in April and
the School's football field. Everything looked better, the grass has
greened up and the general clean-up efforts really show. The High School is not open yet. The shortage of skilled trades workers, and the competition for their services "everywhere" means that all construction takes longer than it should. The School district did use a part of their High School for their Prom, and hopes to open the building for classes yet this fall, or at semester break.
Our praise goes out to Jerry Caffey and his volunteers for the wonderful
work they did getting the sport venues ready for this season. We know from the coverage on Good Morning America, that the first football game at the stadium was a great milestone in the community's recovery. Jerry is a real blessing to that community.
In many ways the Pass looks better, the debris is almost all gone, there is
construction going on throughout the community (even if its not as much as they would like,) and several more small businesses have opened. However, the pace of recovery is slow, and that lends to the frustration folks have after living through the last year in a storm ravaged city. Everyone we talked to said that their biggest need was "volunteer help", especially help with skills. As you cam imagine, the distance in time from the hurricane destruction has lessened the urgency in outsider's minds about the need to continue the support. Manpower is in great need. To that end, I'd be interested in hearing from you if you'd like to make a trip to the Pass to help, and what time frame might work best for you. If we can coordinate another trip like we made last April it would be great. Lou Rizzardi tells use that the tent city has been turned over for the use by volunteers so accommodations for us would be available. Please e-mail me back if you would consider a trip!
At about 8:30 AM we met Lou Rizzardi and off-loaded the exercise/weight
equipment we took down at the Fire Station. It was great to have a
contingent of large, strong firemen to help with the unloading. The firemen
were really appreciative of our efforts as they lost most of their exercise
equipment in the storm, and staying fit for the rigors of their job is
important to them. I've attached a group photo taken after we finished the
unloading. Again I'd like to thank John Cioroch for the generous donation of the exercise/weight equipment we delivered.
After our delivery, we visited the Library. Sally James had a big hug for
Tom and me and sends her best to everyone here. They've added a small
outbuilding to the Library to serve as a "Children's Library".
We also took some pictures of the "KaBoom" playground in the park. I've
attached just two (so as not to overwhelm your e-mail space.)
We were able to have lunch with Lou and Wilma Rizzardi in Gulf Port before
starting our trek back. Both Lou and Wilma are doing fine and expressed
their continued gratitude for the support and caring from the Bedford
community (photo attached.) They gave us several copies of the "Gazebo
Gazette's" anniversary issue (one year from the hurricane.) The issue is
dedicated to thanking all those who have contributed to the Pass's recovery
and in it, Bedford is prominently mentioned. I've placed a copy at the
Bedford Library for all to read.
We left Gulf Port about 2:00 PM Friday and made it safely back to Temperance
about 8:30 AM Saturday. A big thank-you to Tom and Jane Eisenmann for
donating the trailer and tow vehicle for yet another trip (they've
generously supplied our transportation for 6 of the 8 trips we've made.).
Our "Pass Christian Relief Fund" is still working to support the rebuilding
efforts in Mississippi. We had a booth at Carr Park for the Temperance
Garage Sale Day, and through a generous donation from the Monroe County
Quilters, were able to raise $198. We are waiting on the issuance of a
raffle license to announce the kick-off of our "House For A House Raffle"
through which we hope to raise enough money to buy building materials for
one house in the Pass. We'll need help from all of you to sell tickets for
this fund raising event. As soon as the license is approved and the tickets
printed, we'll get information on their availability to you.
Don't forget to support the "Charity Cruise" classic car rally at Kroger
Plaza on the 21st of September. This group has generously pledged a portion of their proceeds for the summer's event to us and we need to support them in return.
Thanks to each of you for your continued support and interest in making life better for our Sister City in Pass Christian.
Denzil