UA Greek Relief raises nearly $100,000
Crimson White – May 9
Immediately following the time when the worst recorded tornado in Tuscaloosa history left much of the city in shambles, members of UA’s Greek community began mobilizing relief efforts to help those in need. The effort, known as UA Greek Relief, was formed to allow UA students who wanted to help those most affected by the storm join efforts with one another. But Patrick Morris, one of UA Greek Relief’s directors, said it quickly became more than just a way for students to help. “The first day we started it was all Greeks,” Morris said. “But then two to three days later, it became non-Greeks, adults, kids, community members, even people from across the country that joined the UA Greeks in assisting those in need. I’d say we had between 300 and 400 people total working over the course of the past week or so.”… “Over the eight days that we’ve done this, we produced over 52,000 hot meals,” Morris said. “We took the meals all over the city. We went to major shelters and distribution centers, and we also just loaded meals up into cars that we handed out to workers, members of the military and the victims of the tornado.”…On May 6, the organization’s main focus shifted from producing hot meals to fundraising, Morris said…In response to the overwhelming support for the city, Morris said UA Greek Relief launched a website where people can donate money to support the cause of rebuilding Tuscaloosa…Morris said the organization has raised almost $100,000 since the tornado struck the city…
Alabama State Bar offering legal advice to storm victims
Tuscaloosa News – May 10
…The Alabama State Bar, in conjunction with the University of Alabama School of Law, has set up help desks at three sites to dispense free legal advice to those affected by the storm. Volunteer lawyers and law students began answering questions last week at the Belk Activity Center in Bowers Park, SOMA Church in Holt and Leland Shopping Center in Alberta. All three are open from 1 p.m.-5 p.m. on weekdays. Help also is available at the law clinic programs office at the UA School of Law from 9 a.m.-noon on weekdays. Anne Hornsby, acting assistant dean for clinical programs, said the help desks are scheduled to be staffed until June. “But we will be here as long as needed,” Hornsby said. She said the service is a work in progress and will be tweaked as necessary to better serve those affected. The UA School of Law is taking advice and considering experiences of law schools in New Orleans that worked with people affected by Hurricane Katrina…
OUR VIEW: In the days, weeks and months after the tornadoes, the need for volunteers will be just as great
Birmingham News – May 10
… A University of Alabama student from Atlanta came with parents and a trailer packed with what she described as 800-count sheets from upscale hotels in Atlanta. All she did was ask for them; some places told her they throw away the sheets after a month’s use. Another UA student from Georgia arrived with her mother in a truck towing a tarp-covered flatbed trailer at least 20 feet long. It was filled with boxes of diapers, clothes, and toiletries….
Editorial: Best and worst respond to storm-ravaged areas
Knoxville (Tenn.) News Sentinel – May 9
… The storms even produced a truce in the bitter rivalry between the University of Alabama and Auburn University. Alabama’s Tuscaloosa campus was spared destruction, but some students living off-campus were killed and many students and faculty members lost their homes. Auburn folks have raised money for the students and a group from Auburn led by Tigers football coach Gene Chizik went to Birmingham – a center of Crimson Tide passion – to assist with the relief efforts there. The Southeastern Conference donated $500,000 to the cause…
UA student Sean Keeler recounts story of tornado with Albany, N.Y., television station
WNYT (Albany, N.Y.) – May 8
Eleven days ago, Sean Keeler was with classmates on the campus of the University of Alabama, when a powerful f-4 tornado blew apart the community…Sean Keeler just finished up his junior year as a criminal justice major at the University of Alabama. On Wednesday April 27, Sean, along with the entire student body, endured a crash course in “life happens-101”…
UA student Kristen Frieze recounts story of tornado with Kansas City, Mo., television station
KSHB (Kansas City, Mo.) – May 6
A Leawood native attending the University of Alabama witnessed the powerful tornado first hand…Last week Kristin Frieze left her sorority house at the University of Alabama to visit her aunt 30 minutes away. It was from her home that Kristin watched in horror as the giant twister hit…Shaken, but not hurt she soon joined her sorority sisters in organizing a massive food and clothing drive on campus. “The very first day that the Greek community started collecting, they had only cooked a fourth of what they had been given and they made over 8,000 meals that night. Living through the storm didn’t scare Kristin away from school. She plans to return to her studies with her peers when classes resume. In fact, she says she would not mind settling in the Tuscaloosa area…
Gasoline might not reach $4 this summer, Birmingham experts say
Birmingham News – May 10
… Peter Clark, an assistant professor of chemical engineering at the University of Alabama who follows petroleum markets, said he expects crude oil prices to continue to fluctuate around $100 a barrel this summer. “There’s no logical reason for oil to be above $100 a barrel right now,” he said. “But investors are like sheep. They follow the leader and are looking for a quick buck.” If crude oil prices fall some more, Clark said drivers shouldn’t expect to get quick relief at the pump. Unlike the big oil producers that are making record profits, Clark says individual station owners exist on thin profit margins. “The money is being made on the production side, not on the retailing side or at the refineries,” Clark said. “Stations are quick to raise the price of gasoline when crude oil goes up to make up for their losses, but slow to lower prices when it falls.” Clark said Americans have cut back on driving so much that Saudi Arabia, the biggest oil producer, has cut back on production by 1 million barrels a day. “There is a record supply of crude oil on hand,” he said. “Though prices have gotten higher than I thought they would, I never expected them to approach record highs again this summer. Driving habits have changed.”
‘Housewives’ star joins fundraising effort for tornado victims
Orange County (Calif.) Register – May 9
…Organizers Sarah Hancock, of Ladera Ranch, and Katy Allan, of Aliso Viejo, raised more than $1,100 for the United Way of West Alabama’s Tornado Relief Fund, after kicking off a bake sale and donation drive at Toy Town in Ladera Ranch over the weekend…Hancock, an alumna of the University of Alabama, said she was amazed at people’s generosity. “It’s inspiring to see how many people pitched in for a good cause,” she said…
DC dollars for Alabama
Al.com – May 9
Members of the Alabama Congressional delegation will serve as honorary hosts at a reception Tuesday in Washington, D.C., to raise money for storm victims back home. Proceeds from the “We Are Alabama” reception will go to the Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund, the University of Alabama Acts of Kindness Fund and the American Red Cross with a notation for Alabama Disaster Relief…