Recovery

There are too many people to thank for the work that has gone into supporting the Hurricane ravaged areas of Southeast Texas. We have all been affected, and we have all given what we can.

Whether your house lost power, lost a roof, or is just plain gone, seems as though this storm touched us all. Through this, though it is hard to find the good, we see the good everyday if we look at those around us giving of themselves, and their resources to improve the lives of those effected.

It is in times like these that I am proud to work for Texas AgriLife Extension; proud to be an American; proud to be a Texan. Extension has responded to this disaster in many ways, not the least of which is through operation "No Fences". Through this effort upwards of 4,000 round bales of hay have been delivered to Southeast Texas in support of stranded/stray livestock. In addition 400 water troughs have been delivered to water cattle, in areas with salt contaminated water supplies. There has also been financial contributions of over $115,000. All of this done as a hummanitarian cotribution and a contribution to our brethren in the Agriculture Community.

Through all of this I have also listend to the naysayers that ask why we are working so hard and contributing so much to an industry/people that should be able and prepared to stand on their own.

For me it has felt natural to give and to work to address the needs of the people of Southeast Texas. I think it also feels natural for most other Extension Employees. For those that it does not come natural to, I offer this as an explanation of why we are working so hard to help the people of Southeast Texas:
Because we are good people....even if they are not
Because we will make good decisions....even if they do not
Because we believe in the greater good for all people...even if they do not
Because we are blessed... even if they are not
Because we can... and right now, They can not!

We help our fellow man because it is the right thing to do.... Regardless of the responsibility, ability, or stability of the man we are helping!

For what it's worth,
The thoughts of a 4-H Specialist,
Kevin

Here we go AGAIN.....

As I Write this blog I am waiting for another SOC teleconference. I can't tell you what SOC stands for, but I know what the group does. They coordinate the emergency disaster relief effort for the State of Texas. Pretty high level stuff, and it includes us! Texas AgriLife Extension as an agency of the State of Texas is committed to supporting disaster relief efforts in anyway that we can. My first thought regarding disaster relief and our agency was "how can we really help".

After experiencing the near miss of Hurricane Gustav I now better understand what we can and should do. First we can stay informed. Information both locally and from the state should lead our efforts. For some of us that means we will be evacuating along with our constituents. For others that means providing assistants to shelters and evacuees.

If you are not in an area evacuated it is important that you make the presence of Texas AgriLife Extension known in the relief effort. In doing so you will gain the information needed to see just how we can help. In doing this I would suggest visiting the Shelters that are established in your county and introducing yourself and our agency. Also let the Shelter Directors know about our local network of Volunteers and 4-H families. As needs in the shelters arise we are uniquely positioned to activate volunteer resources and gather goods for people in need.

Your District DDC's (that would be Dale Fritz, Monte Dozier and myself) will communicate with you to coordinate information and help you locate resources or assistance as needed. Gustave showed us that information during a disaster is the prime resource and is often hard to come by.

Ultimately our Agency may be needed most in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, but steps and planning we make now will determine how we can provide support later.

Stay Safe and keep in touch,
Kevin

Ready Set Go!!!!!!

The 4-H year has started, and like every event we organize things start to work themselves out once we get past the original inertia.

Part of what has created the inertia this fall has been all the uncertainty regarding 4-H Connect and re-enrollment. I hope the training this past week has us all up to speed. It's worth repeating - As we implement this new system we will be relying on each other to climb the learning curve.

As a reminder if you have not already sent a copy of your county calendar to the district office, they are due on September 15, along with a county 4-H budget.

We seemed to have dodged the bullet with Gustav. A special thanks goes out to all the agents that pitched in to man the animal shelters and provide an extension presence at the family shelters. I would name names, but I know I would leave too many out.

Lets all say a quick prayer that Hurricane Ike is no worse than Gustav.

Best of luck,
Kevin