UA Greek Relief answers call after Tuscaloosa tornado
Birmingham News – May 5
When the electricity went out a week ago on the University of Alabama campus, light bulbs went on. Energy and ideas surged, and the power of fraternity and sorority members emerged. UA Greek Reliefbecame the initiative that is providing food and other supplies to storm victims and relief workers in a county where a tornado killed at least 40 people. “We came up with the idea the night of the storm,” said Patrick Morris, a Delta Kappa Epsilon officer who is directing the network of more than 400 volunteers. “We realized our fraternity had all this food, because we were supposed to have another week of school. We knew it was going to go to waste since the university was asking the students to leave. We were like, ‘Why don’t we cook all the food and then take it out and serve it as hot meals?'” Ashley Getwan, president of the university’s Panhellenic Association, was on board from the start. “It was not very organized at first, kind of chaotic,” she said…Approximately 1,500 meals were prepared and distributed. “We thought we had made a great impact,” said Morris, a Mountain Brook High School graduate who just finished his junior year at Alabama. “The next day, we thought, let’s spread the word and see if we could get some donations. We ended up getting the entire Greek system involved. We spread the word to all alumni and parents of students. Before we knew it, the next day we put out 8,000 meals.” Morris was told that was one-fourth of the meals distributed that day throughout the city…Getwan, a biochemistry major from Gardendale who went to the Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School, is in charge of communication. She and others have spread the word of their work through email, Twitter, Facebook and a website: www.UAGreekRelief.com. Not all of the response is coming locally. “They’re coming from Memphis, Nashville, Destin,” Sims said. “All these people are saying, ‘We saw this is what you need. We brought this.’ It’s absolutely amazing.”…The last day to donate goods is Thursday. The last day food will be cooked is Friday. After that, the efforts will focus on fundraising, through the website. “We wanted to make a difference,” said Morris, a business management major who said managing this initiative has been a valuable experience. “It’s pretty safe to say this is the biggest philanthropy project the Greek system has ever organized. It’s very eye-opening to see the power of the Greek system.”
College of Education collecting Books for Bama
Crimson White – May 5
Doctoral students within the College of Education are collecting books for residents affected by last week’s tornado. Dr. Lisa Scherff, associate professors of English education as well as the director of The Belser-Parton Literacy Center, said the idea for Books for Bama came to her after she attempted to donate supplies to the University Rec Center immediately following the tornado…The goal of Books for Bama “is to restock all impacted students’ and families’ personal libraries,” according to its Facebook page. “Libraries will get rebuilt, but not personal libraries,” Scherff said. Scherff felt books often get overlooked in today’s environment of ever-present media, but when they all disappear, it can be devastating.“People may have lost the only Bible they ever owned,” Scherff said. “Friday, I didn’t have power, but I had a lantern and a book…Books for Bama has raised $2,000 worth of books…
Storm Briefs
Tuscaloosa News – May 5
Lawyers, University of Alabama law students and faculty and paralegals will offer free legal assistance starting today for tornado victims who have questions regarding legal issues stemming from the storms. The service will be available weekdays until June 1 with assistance available from 9 a.m. to noon at the University of Alabama School of Law and from 1 to 5 p.m. at Leland Shopping Center, Belk Activity Center and Soma Church at 212 44th Court NE in Holt. The assistance is a joint effort by the University of Alabama School of Law, the Tuscaloosa County Bar Association and the Alabama State Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Program.
Students get used to new schools
Tuscaloosa News – May 5
… The students were also given goody bags, teddy bears and books courtesy of the University of Alabama’s Center of Ethics and Social Responsibility and Bess the Book Bus, a mobile literacy outreach program…
Former, current UA athletes support relief effort
Tuscaloosa News – May 5
After riding out the deadly tornado in his home near 15th Street, former University of Alabama and current Kansas City Chiefs player Javier Arenas wanted to give back to Tuscaloosa Arenas, along with UA track athlete Sarah Buschmann, partnered up with the university’s Kansas City Alumni Chapter to help gather supplies for the relief effort, which they distributed at the University Mall parking lot Wednesday. ‘I cried plenty of times to be honest with you because when I walked out of my house, I expected my house to be gone,’ Arenas said. ‘When I walked outside of my house, coming out of the bathroom, I expected the worst. But it was 10 times what I expected. ‘I was real reluctant to leave. Being an athlete, a former athlete, it was heavy on my heart because I knew I had a responsibility back in Tuscaloosa.’
Alabamians in Washington raising money for tornado relief
Birmingham News – May 5
… Proceeds from the event will go to Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley’s Emergency Relief Fund, the University of Alabama Acts of Kindness Fund and the American Red Cross with a special notation for disaster relief in Alabama.
University of Alabama alumni name D-FW collection point for relief efforts to aid storm victims
WFAA.com (Dallas, Tex.) – May 4
University of Alabama alumni groups around the country are pitching in to lend support to residents in Tuscaloosa and surrounding areas impacted by the tornadoes that roared through the area last week. One group known as “Tide In Texas” has established collection points in the Dallas-Fort Worth area…The University of Alabama is offering information on relief efforts online at http://www.ua.edu/tornadorelief.
Tuscaloosa tornado experience shared in harrowing account by University of Alabama student
Al.com – May 5
The following story originally appeared on Randy Robbins’ Facebook page…This is my experience during the tornado that swept through Alberta and Tuscaloosa… If you are to take anything away from this story it is two things: 1) God saved so many people that day including me; and 2) disasters bring out the absolute best in some people…and the absolute worst in others… Randy Robbins is a student at the University of Alabama and a native of Homewood.