hurricane irene.

i've received an amazing number of sweet notes, texts & calls from folks all over the country who are seeing on the news how devastated vermont was by hurricane irene, and who want to make sure we are okay. thank you for thinking of me, and for your concerns. the good news is that montpelier survived relatively unscathed by the storm-- we had high water and plenty of damage to river banks and basements and other spots. but compared to many other parts of the state --south of here particularly though even as close as 15 minutes away-- we were incredibly lucky. the distress many regions of our tiny state is going through in tremendous, scary & sad.

it's all too easy for me to forget for a minute all that our state has gone through in the last 48 hours because i'm not faced with the immediate challenges in visible routine. and then, i see a photo, hear a piece on the radio, or talk to a coworker and the reality of this situation comes crashing back to me. for a glimpse of just how bad it is around here, check out this video. and please ignore the dramatic music. the scenes are incredibly sad, and i'm quickly learning of so many people i know who were badly affected. the town of waterbury, where the gmcr headquarters reside, was underwater and at least a handful of employees completely lost their homes. there is chaos and tragedy all over this state. FEMA has arrived to provide support, and the government is thankfully taking it very seriously.

we have a long road to recover from this, but if there is one thing i admire about vermont it is the sense of community here. vermonters are already coming together to support each other in many ways. this was one of my favorite tales today.


"Vermont is a state I love... I love Vermont because of her hills and valleys, her scenery and invigorating climate, but most of all, I love her because of her indomitable people. They are a race of pioneers who almost impoverished themselves for love of others. If ever the spirit of liberty should vanish from the rest of the Union, it could be restored by the generous share held by the people in this brave little State of Vermont." 
-- Calvin Coolidge, after the floods of 1927