A road in Florida flooded by the massive rains brought by Hurricane Helene.
As I write this, people across the southeast states are reeling from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene.
As an emergency communications geek, I follow a number of emergency service professionals on social media, and the information coming out of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee is both dire and inspiring.
Yes, inspiring. Even before the winds and rain had died down, neighbors and professionals leapt into action to perform swift water rescues, dig survivors out of mudslides and destroyed buildings and do house to house welfare checks in their neighborhoods. With power, cell phone, landlines and internet down, Ham Radio operators hastily organized networks to help coordinate relief efforts throughout the affected regions.
And right now, people across the country are gripped with an desire to reach out and help .
This week, The Newsletter contemplates that human impulse to cooperate and give support and aid to our fellows, and how we've organized our society around it.
How We Take Care of Each Other
For all of our flaws, there is an essentially decent part of human nature that compels us to render aid to the afflicted and unfortunate.
We celebrate our humaneness with the first two articles of what will be an ongoing series documenting "service clubs" whose names may be familiar— organizations that are doing good in our communities.
The Changing Nature of Doing Good
The legacy of ‘service clubs’ such as Soroptomists and Rotary lives on in a new generation of social clubs and volunteer organizations.
• Supervisors Focus on Unhosted Rentals
In their September 24 meeting, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors approved a subcommittee to examine the increasing number of housing units not occupied by the owner, purchased for the purpose of short term rentals.
(09/24/2024) → Lookout Local
• Applications Open for Free Wood Chipping
Applications are open through October 31 to Santa Cruz County residents for reimbursement of wood chipping costs under the Resource Conservation District of Santa Cruz County's Neighborhood Chipping Program.
(09/24/2024) → Lookout Local
A road in Florida flooded by the massive rains brought by Hurricane Helene.
