As the Memorial Day Weekend approached, I knew I could get the phone call at any time and it came at 4:00 pm late Friday afternoon. By 8:00 am Saturday morning, I was in Joplin, Missouri at ground zero of the recent F-5 tornado assisting the City of Joplin and the State Emergency Management Agency with public safety issues related to damaged buildings and homes. Now you’ve seen the reports and stories all over each of the news networks and CNN. But the real story is the sense of community and the wonderful spirit that we experienced as we went house-to-house and block-to-block. The property owners, families, friends, and the multitudes of volunteers were working hard and were bound and determined to not only clean up what was left of their lives but to make the city even better. Everyone was grateful and appreciative of our support. It was clear to me that the city leadership, local public safety leaders and employees, and the local building engineers and inspectors were not only dedicated to their jobs and their community but also lived within the city limits of the community they served. Their leadership was not outsourced to non-residents and you could tell it from the touch of their handshakes and the quiver in their voices. I was proud to stand with them in their important work. But this experience got me thinking. How would Independence handle a similar situation? If entire blocks of homes in my neighborhood were wiped off the face of the earth, would those displaced families and souls choose to rebuild their lives here? How would our leadership handle such a catastrophe? Would the high concentration of absentee landlords help or hinder a successful recovery? Is having only one hospital better than two? Is Independence a community with character? Local folks need to ask these questions now about the preparedness of our community instead of pointing fingers in the aftermath of such an event. The photo above was taken six days after the tornado and you can see the overwhelming task the good folks in Joplin have ahead of them. Please support the recovery efforts in Joplin, “A Community with Character.” They need supplies, financial support, and your prayers.Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Joplin, Missouri – "A Community with Character"
As the Memorial Day Weekend approached, I knew I could get the phone call at any time and it came at 4:00 pm late Friday afternoon. By 8:00 am Saturday morning, I was in Joplin, Missouri at ground zero of the recent F-5 tornado assisting the City of Joplin and the State Emergency Management Agency with public safety issues related to damaged buildings and homes. Now you’ve seen the reports and stories all over each of the news networks and CNN. But the real story is the sense of community and the wonderful spirit that we experienced as we went house-to-house and block-to-block. The property owners, families, friends, and the multitudes of volunteers were working hard and were bound and determined to not only clean up what was left of their lives but to make the city even better. Everyone was grateful and appreciative of our support. It was clear to me that the city leadership, local public safety leaders and employees, and the local building engineers and inspectors were not only dedicated to their jobs and their community but also lived within the city limits of the community they served. Their leadership was not outsourced to non-residents and you could tell it from the touch of their handshakes and the quiver in their voices. I was proud to stand with them in their important work. But this experience got me thinking. How would Independence handle a similar situation? If entire blocks of homes in my neighborhood were wiped off the face of the earth, would those displaced families and souls choose to rebuild their lives here? How would our leadership handle such a catastrophe? Would the high concentration of absentee landlords help or hinder a successful recovery? Is having only one hospital better than two? Is Independence a community with character? Local folks need to ask these questions now about the preparedness of our community instead of pointing fingers in the aftermath of such an event. The photo above was taken six days after the tornado and you can see the overwhelming task the good folks in Joplin have ahead of them. Please support the recovery efforts in Joplin, “A Community with Character.” They need supplies, financial support, and your prayers.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
No “Landmark” Left Behind
It has been over three years since March 2008 when the old Palmer School building was evacuated and judged to be uninhabitable due to issues with mold. Before the Independence School District (ISD) had invested all that tax money into the facility, it had successfully served as a school building for 8 decades. And, yes, it is an important contributing element in the Harry S Truman National Historic Landmark District. With that said, I believe this situation needs to be put in perspective. To my knowledge, the Palmer School building is one of only a very few public school buildings in the entire country that are designated as either National Historic Landmarks or part of Landmark Districts. The only ones I can think of in this region are the two school buildings in Topeka associated with the Brown vs. Board of Education and Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas (Landmarks associated with the story of our nation’s civil rights movement in the 1950’s). All buildings designated as National Historic Landmarks and those contributing to Landmark Districts are not just important but are critical to the education of US citizens on the history of this great and exceptional country. From our struggles in civil rights to one of the great American stories of a young man with just a high school diploma from ISD and no college degree becoming one of the greatest US Presidents and world leaders in the 20th century. Actually Palmer Junior High has its own history as it relates to civil rights. During its early years, Independence was a segregated community and African-American students were not allowed to attend there. ISD deserves high marks for its success in Western Independence and for its leadership in completing the new Ennovation Center and administrative offices at the old hospital site. But here in Independence, time and time again, the things that we do poorly overshadow the things we do right. We should all be proud to live in Independence and be a part of a public school district that has been a part of educational excellence since 1866. But that pride can be stronger and radiate beyond our boundaries if we would just remove the large “For Sale” banner on the Palmer building, clean it up, fix the problem, and make it again a contributing component to the educational and civic life of the Truman National Historic Landmark District. I’m reminded of one of the basic principles of stewardship I learned as a young Boy Scout. You “always” leave an area cleaner and in better condition than it was before you occupied it.
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