June 18, 2007
An Overbrook group -- a
40-person volunteer team went to Greensburg, KS on Flag Day, June 14, 2007 to
do clean up work. We walked the city
cemetery to pick trash that might prohibit the grass from being mowed and then,
worked primarily at the remains of a brick home that was a stately turn of the
century estate and one of only a very few structures remaining standing. We raked trash and debris into piles and
loaded them into wheelbarrows and hauled the debris to the curb for pickup by
large machinery. The downtown and commercial business areas were being cleanup
by heavy construction equipment due to the size and amount of debris.
Summary of the day . .
. .
At 4:08am on Thursday, June 14 – Flag Day, a caravan of
vehicles loaded with adults and youth representing the City of Overbrook,
Overbrook Rotary Club, and Grace Community Church of Overbrook quietly left
town and headed to Greensburg for a workday.
Of the ten total vehicles, one pickup pulled a covered trailer hauling
rakes, shovels, wheelbarrows, water, and a sandwich lunch for the noon meal for
the forty volunteers on the trip.
Spear’s Restaurant in west
Former Greensburg Postmaster Bob Dixon was the personal
contact for the trip. He was there to meet the team and help coordinate work
assignments for the day. Following the
necessary registration, the team went to the
About 10:30a, the team moved to the west side of Greensburg
to a home site which prior to the tornado had been a stately
turn-of-the-century, three-story brick home and estate. The tornado had taken the roof and did sever
damage home especially on the south and west sides. The garage and any other
out buildings that had been on the grounds were completely destroyed. All the
trees and foliage was gone with only stumps remaining. Overnight rains had left the ground surface
muddy. And tracks created by heavy equipment used to bulldoze large debris in
to piles at the front of the property were filled rain water and made working
conditions slippery.
The Overbrook team spent the remainder of their workday
raking trash and debris into piles, loading it into tubs and wheelbarrows and
hauling it to the street side to be picked up at a later time. Several times
throughout the day someone would announce the uncovering of what had been
personal property of this or some other area resident . . . a child’s toy,
Christmas decorations, sheet music, a muddy water stained family picture, even
pages from a family Bible. One of the
items was a 78-rpm record cover of The Wizard of Oz story.
Lunch at noon was a welcome break for everyone. Workers gathered under a tent used for Sunday
Services adjacent to where the
A gentle rain fell for a short period as work resumed
following lunch but not enough to deter the workers from their task. By 4pm, even those in excellent physically
condition were making comments about being tired. The sun had returned mid-afternoon but the
temperature had remained in the mid- 70’s all day. The rain the night before was more than
enough to eliminate any dust problems so dust masks had not been required. By the time tools were loaded, shoes were
cleaned to a tolerable degree, and several group pictures were taken, there was
just enough time to drive through the town one last time to see the business
district, the school, the hospital and even the “Big Well”. Pictures were taken and indelible memories
were created. The trip back to Overbrook
allowed time to reflect on the day and confirm deep-down inside what in life is
truly “most valuable”. To experience in person what the forces of Nature can do
in mere moments to a living, thriving community of nearly 1,800 residents is
something that forty people from Overbrook,
Bob Dixon stated it well
. . . . “Over the years, I’ve been a part of several work crews that
have helped other communities following storms but never ever thought that I’d
be on the receiving end! Life has no certainties!”
On Friday night May 4, Bob and Ann Dixon lost their home and
most all of their lifelong possessions as did hundred’s of other