The wildfire in Colorado Springs is actually at the north end of town, closer to the south suburbs of Denver, where I live and minister. Some Columbine people are even closer. It's national news. And at the same time for us, it's a neighbor kind of thing. The two are really different, national news and word about neighbors' troubles.
To the national news media, this messy, uncontrollable, spreading damage machine is something for people to look at, something for them to be engrossed in as they see how hard it is to work with and how much personal devastation it leaves in its path. My people, at least some of them, know about what happens when your disaster is national news. They lived through the Columbine High School shooting back in 1999. And they also know the personal side, the neighbor side, is different.
Our hearts go out.to the evacuated families waiting or knowing about the fate of their homes. And to the animals who may not have been able to be evacuated. We have a sister congregation right in the neighborhood where it is happening. Three (so far) of the families who lost their homes are congregation members there. They will gather this weekend to assess the situation for them as a congregation. Many have been evacuated. Others were evacuated and/or burned out last year about this time in the nearby Waldo Canyon area.
I asked if there was anything they needed, and they don't know yet. At the moment, one family with mobility issues is staying in a hotel, and help with paying for that would be good. Some people left with just the clothes they were wearing -- it might help to have a gift card so they could buy some new underwear or a change of clothes. Later, there may be more to do. "You just get tired of shopping," said my colleague, remembering a time when she herself had gone through a house fire. Maybe the insurance will cover it, but there is just so much.... that's when a gift of housewares or linens or tools or sewing equipment would be a blessing. In the meantime, members of her congregation are putting together packages for the kids who have been evacuated so they will have some books to read and games to play.
People in Columbine remember the (literally) tons of stuffed animals and things that arrived in the wake of the shooting at the high school. Too much, and it just kept coming. They want to give thoughtful assistance, not to create a burden, and we are blessed to be able to be in touch with our brothers and sisters in Colorado Springs so they can tell us what to send and when. Those tons of stuff, that's the price of having your disaster on National news.
In the meantime, money is good... it can wait or be spent at once, and it can be used for what is needed. I will carry this lesson with me as I go from here to Northwest Montana, a place where they also have wildfires. I will also remember to be in touch with people all around the big area my new congregation serves, so when it's time to reach out in a neighborly way, there is someone to call. National news or not, it's good to be able to give help that is really helpful and encouragement to people you really know.
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