Good morning, All.
Hope y’all are safe! I would say dry, too, but not likely today with all the rain we are getting. Starting with gratitude, we thank you so much for your generosity, which has been heartwarming and spiritually uplifting. Our service is empowered by your love. Many thanks!
Let’s get to our Update:
The need for clean water, labor, cleaning supplies and food remains high. At this point, we are only asking for donations of specific supplies as our capacity for storage is reaching its limit. Things we have asked for include:
Walkable fruit- apples, bananas, etc.
Pet supplies- Cat Litter, food
Paper towels, toilet paper
XL adult clothing, adult sized shoes/boots
Ice- we have several coolers and we would love to provide more sustainable storage for the fresh food donations we receive, but without power we are limited by our supply of ice. If anyone would like to be our ice person, please reach out first, as that obviously takes some coordination to do it right. Stop by the center or call/text us at 802.355.6316 to inquire. We essentially need one donation in the morning and one in the evening.
OTHER NOTES ON DONATIONS
We are stacked on all other sizes of clothing, please do not bring us any until further notice.
Another important ask we have of donations concerns food. Please check the expiration date on the stuff you are delivering. We do not want to add foodborne illness to the challenges of our people and the demand on our volunteers to sift through and remove those products is high.
SOMETHING NEW
We now have flood buckets available for the community. These are buckets loaded with cleaning supplies that you can take home to heal your space. Please stop by and get one for you or your neighbors.
A note on PEOPLE POWER and a demand for our LANDLORDS and LOCAL LEADERS:
The city of Barre did a good job organizing a volunteer force yesterday, which was deployed to folks that signed up for assistance. Our experience in the field is that some of these spaces were owned by landlords, while the tenet families had been displaced and lost everything they couldn’t carry.
Our ask from LANDLORDS: If you are going to accept the FREE labor of community members and POOR PEOPLE with generous hearts, we better see you on the backside of this FIGHTING for affordable and accessible housing FOR ALL. And there is no oversimplification here. we are not simply asking you to lower your rent. We are wise enough to know this issue is multifaceted. WE ARE ASKING YOU TO DEMAND AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE HOUSING FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITIES WHERE YOU OWN PROPERTY. We are asking you to vote, show up, and fight for the DEEP CHANGE required to ensure humanity has a safe place to live.
Our ask from LOCAL LEADERS: LISTEN. LEARN. ACT. Listen to the people. Learn what we need. DO SOMETHING. The clock is ticking and this catastrophe has exposed weaknesses in our physical and social infrastructure. It also holds the feet of our collective capacity for DEEP CHANGE to the fire. Your people suffer. Your people are displaced. Your people hunger and thirst for clean water, clean air and community. RESPOND ACCORDINGLY.
BIG NEWS:
- The RBCC has created the Rainbow Relief Fund. This is a disaster recovery fund to be used now, and in perpetuity, for the relief of human needs in Barre and central Vermont. If you would like to make a donation to the fund, please indicate that in the notes of your donation. Stay tuned for more information.
- To kick off the Rainbow Relief Fund, our good friend and amazing artist, Dierdra Tara Michelle, is donating a series of paintings to be auctioned publicly. All of the proceeds will go to the fund, and all of the money will be used in service of our communities in need following a disaster. The paintings will be posted here and on our social media pages. Bids can be made online and at the conclusion of the event, winners will be contact. Stay tuned for more information!
We love you for this, Dierdra, and we sincerely thank all those that take part in the auction.
Thank you, Folks! Time to get to WORK.
