Final Report of the Riverside Long-Term Disaster Organization

Summary:

The following report describes the Spokane community’s response to a disastrous windstorm that destroyed or severely damaged a large number of homes in the Riverside Village Mobile Home Park in north Spokane County. Park residents, individuals throughout the Spokane area, churches, denominational offices, regional disaster agencies, and county government officials came together in a remarkable way to respond quickly, efficiently, and effectively to deal with the aftermath of the storm that took the homes and property of some of Spokane’s most vulnerable citizens.

One Family’s Story:

On July 23, 2014, the mobile home where Jack and I live was destroyed by the severe storm that swept through Riverside Village Mobile Home Park. Twenty huge trees landed on the roof and deck of our trailer causing the kitchen and living room floors to collapse, large sections of walls to be blown out, and the roof and ceiling to fall. Most everything we had was destroyed, including our freezers stocked up with meat for winter. Our air conditioner, brand new hot water tank, and electric furnace also were gone.

We were trapped until rescue workers helped us find a way to get out. Eventually we climbed out the window and slid off the side of our handicapped ramp – trees blocked going down the regular way out.Miracles do happen; our car came through the storm without a scratch! Although there were trees blocking all the roads, I was able to get away by driving through peoples’ yards. I told people whose yards I drove through I was sorry; they all replied, “It’s OK, it’s OK.” We stayed at our kids’ place a few weeks looking all the time for housing we could afford and that we could qualify for. We finally came back here and moved into a very old and cold trailer. Although it was just temporary and very small, it was a roof over our heads and we were grateful.

Thanks to all of you we have a nice home now. It’s a used 14’ X 70’ mobile home with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a good sized living room and kitchen area. One bathroom even has a washer and dryer.Although Jack and I divorced more than 40 years ago, I am now his unpaid caregiver. Jack, who will be 75 this year, has heart and lung problems. I am 72 years old and do everything that needs to be done – inside and out. From the bottom of our hearts we thank you for your generosity in the gift of our home – we finally feel settled again and I work hard trying to keep the house and yard nice.

How can I express to you how very grateful we are for your help and understanding? Our Father still watches over us and God bless all of your for the blessing you have given us.

The Disaster Event and Its Aftermath:

On Wednesday, July 23, 2014 a severe storm swept through Riverside Village Mobile Home Park, north of Spokane, Washington. Residents described the noise and swirling winds as something close to a tornado. The devastation was overwhelming. Trees lay across downed power lines, vehicles were smashed, mobile homes were cut in two, and debris blocked all the park’s roads. Miraculously no one was injured, but forty of the 168 mobile homes in the village were severely damaged, most a total loss. Furthermore, the residents’ undamaged property was in jeopardy from bad weather or looters because the walls and roofs of homes were open to the elements, electric security lights did not function, and rural law enforcement had a limited capacity to patrol the area. As a result, many residents chose to sleep in vehicles or makeshift shelters in order to protect what remained of their belongings. To compound the stress, officials from the local utility company estimated that it might take at least a month until water and electricity could be restored. A vulnerable population before the storm, few of the park’s residents had insurance and few had the financial resources to enable them to rebuild their lives. Then, on Saturday, August 2, a second storm swept through. Although it did not cause much additional physical damage, the noise and the fury of the storm plus the prospect of continued power outages further traumatized the people.

In addition to the physical and psychological damage, the two storms resulted in legal and financial stress. Although Riverside Mobile Home Village had insurance to cover some of the cleanup cost, there was no

insurance to replace or repair the damaged units, either those owned by the park management or the ones owned by park residents. Furthermore, even before the storm, many of the dwellings did not meet state building codes. That meant that repairs by licensed contractors and volunteers would need to bring the homes up to minimum standards, significantly adding to the cost of rehabilitation. Finally, because many of the owner-occupied units were purchased or gifted on handshake deals long ago, titles were often not secure, making it impossible to obtain loans to cover the cost of repairs. These issues created special hardships for village residents, many who were elderly and/or disabled.

The Response:

It is important to recognize that much of the initial work to bring order and security in the aftermath of the storm was provided by the park residents themselves. The day after the storm, community members organized themselves to patrol the area at night in order to prevent looting. They also began clearing some of the debris. In addition, several men set up a meal service using food donated by residents whose freezers and refrigerators could not operate because of a lack of electricity. Sandy McCoin, the mobile home park manager worked tirelessly to restore calm, to deal with the park’s insurance company so that clean-up efforts could begin, and to liaise with local service agencies so that they could alert residents of emergency resources and identify the families most in need of assistance.

The Red Cross was the first outside organization to respond with food, shelter, and water. This assistance continued for about a week, the period of immediate crisis. By Saturday, July 26, volunteers from local

churches began bringing in a hot meal each day to feed both the residents and the clean-up crews working to remove downed trees from park dwellings and roads.

Almost immediately it was clear that a substantial and sustained effort would be needed to meet the crisis, both short term and long term. With the assistance of the Inland Northwest chapter of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), a large number of Spokane area individuals and organizations established the Riverside Long-Term Disaster Relief Organization (RLTRO) to coordinate the work of government, churches, individuals, and voluntary organizations. RLTRO elected officers and developed a clearly delineated mission statement and by-laws based on a model recommended by National VOAD. That model emphasized focusing the disaster response on the basic needs for shelter, security, and sanitation. Fortunately, RLTRO was able to partner with the New Hope Resource Center, an existing ecumenical agency that had served Riverside Village residents for many years. As a 501(c)3 organization, New Hope could function as the RLTRO fiscal agent, operating under established non-profit procedures. New Hope’s director, Janeen Leachman, an individual who had the trust of Riverside residents, could also serve as the case manager to coordinate relief efforts at Riverside.

In order to respond to the immediate and pressing needs, it was essential to acquire funding. On Friday, July 25, two days after the first storm hit and even before RLTRO had been formed, Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church, a New Hope partner, applied for a grant of $5000 from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. The grant was approved on Monday, July 28. This money enabled New Hope to purchase tarps to cover walls and roofs open to the elements, to lease storage units for the personal property of people whose homes had been severely damaged, and to rent U-Haul trucks to transport people’s belongings to the storage units. The work of identifying needs, taking possessions to storage, and keeping records, which began on August 2, was carried out by volunteers from the Knights of Columbus from St. Joseph Catholic Church.

For the first month after the RLTRO was formed, members met every week; then for the next 3 months they met almost every two weeks. Brad Beal of Colbert Presbyterian Church and John Yoder of Whitworth Presbyterian Church served as co-chairs. Fundraising, restoration of utilities, tree removal, and relocating families to safe housing were immediate concerns. Because the downed trees were not suitable for a saw mill, the cost of clearing the park appeared to be prohibitive, far exceeding the insurance coverage. However, RLTRO was able to negotiate with a local pulp mill that agreed to remove the trees and clean up the debris at no charge. The next priority was determining what to do with damaged homes. This task involved assessing structural damage, estimating the cost of repairs, coordinating with county and state officials responsible for code enforcement, and determining what the

residents themselves would be able to contribute in terms of money or labor. This work also involved deciding what to do with homes damaged beyond repair. The situation was further complicated by the fact that the cost of removing a single badly damaged home could run as high as $5,000, a sum far beyond the means of most residents.

Although the extensive scope of the disaster required macro-level financial, clean-up, and security solutions targeted at the entire mobile home complex, recovery efforts also depended on micro-level plans tailored for each family. As noted earlier, RLTRO engaged New Hope’s Janeen Leachman as the case manager to carry out this task. RLTRO authorized Janeen to dispense funds of up to $600 per household unit; larger expenditures were evaluated and approved by the RLTRO board. Initially the New Hope Resource Center covered the cost of Janeen’s salary, considering her work a part of normal New Hope outreach efforts. However, it soon became clear that the work of case manager would far exceed her normal workload and that addition funding would be needed to pay for her extra time. Because it was estimated that Janeen’s work would take at least one year (disaster response efforts normally take between a year and 18 months), and because the cost of home repair and client relocation were expected to be substantial, it was essential that RLTRO find ways to raise funds. Fortunately, we experienced an immediate and significant response from churches, service clubs, and individuals. Within weeks, RLTRO and New Hope received more than $10,000 in cash donations. Furthermore, there was a generous flood of furniture and household items. In the end, approximately $30,000 was donated. In addition, the United Methodist Church provided a grant of $20,000 to be used for case management. In the end, RLTRO’s funds totaled about $50,000. Over the course of 18 months, the RLTRO, working with New Hope Resource Center, provided the following services to 53 families or individuals directly affected by the two windstorms in July and August of 2014. Following the storm, at least 2,500 hours of volunteer work and more than $50,000 worth of goods and services have been contributed to the effort of restoring peoples’ lives and property. This effort included immediate emergency assistance and intermediate and long-term recovery.

Immediate Emergency Assistance:

1. Provided generators and fuel to be used at the community kitchen and by individual residents. Six of the generators were purchased by Spokane area churches of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints.

2. Bought and installed tarps to cover holes in homes and belongings stored outside.

3. Assisted 8 families to relocate their belongings until the families eventually could be placed in safe, sanitary, and secure permanent housing. The RLTRO rented U-Haul trucks and units at a nearby storage facility. The Knights of Columbus provided the labor and record keeping for this operation (more than 250 hours).

4. Supplied food to Riverside Village residents. In addition to hundreds of pounds of food provided by North County Food Pantry, a New Hope facility that partners with Second Harvest, RLTRO donated $50 grocery vouchers to 30 families.

5. Placed one individual with fragile health in a hotel until safe permanent housing could be found.

6. Provided money to replace the damaged windshield of an elderly couple’s vehicle. The couple needed transportation for medical appointments.

Intermediate and Long-term Recovery Assistance:

1. Offered office space at New Hope for the US government Small Business Association, which worked with individuals or businesses affected by the storm to obtain low-interest loans. While only one person from Riverside Village qualified for a loan, several other people in the New Hope service area were able to qualify.

2. Cleared storm damage for families.

3. Provided home repairs.

Paid contractors to repair 3 houses.

Supplied materials for 13 other homes repaired by RLRTO volunteers.

4. Assisted 14 families or individuals find new housing.

Paid rental deposit for 6 people

Helped 8 people work with Spokane County’s Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program HPRP). HPRP connected families to the Spokane Neighborhood Action Program (SNAP) and Catholic Charities. Both organizations work to place families in permanent housing by helping with first month rent payments and case management.

Assisted one family to purchase a home

5. Organized furniture and household supply donations. This included storing and distributing sofas, stoves, entertainment centers, beds, cookware, etc.

6. Fixed fencing for livestock owned by one of New Hope’s clients.

7. Arranged trauma counseling for 4 children and 1 adult.

Financial Statement:

INCOME

Cash Income

From Individual Donations………………………………………$ 9,645

From Local Companies…………………………………………...$ 5,700

From Local Congregations………………………………………$ 9,047

From National or Regional Denominational Offices…………...$21.8021

Total Income…………..$46,394In-Kind Income

American Red Cross……………………………………………...$ 4,300

Waste Management (debris disposal)……………………………$ 1,300

EXPENSES

Responding to Immediate Emergency Needs…………………….………$ 6,416

Storage units……………,,,,,,,,,.$1,323

Generators and fuel……..……..$2,999

Tarps……………………………$ 182 Emergency temporary housing..$1,452

1 The Pacific Northwest Annual Methodist Conference pledged $20,000, primarily to be used for case worker costs. As of March, 2016 about $14,000 of the pledge has been accessed. Although there may be a few expenses yet to be covered, the remaining money (about $6,000) may not be needed and will not be requested unless needed.

Windshield repair...…..….…….$ 460

Long-term Repairs for Mobile Homes…………………………………...$12,068

Paid to Contractor (Fore-Ever Construction……..$2,500 Materials for Volunteer Workers…………………$9,260

Mileage for Volunteer Coordinator………………$ 308

Permanent Relocation Assistance………………………………….……..$16,850

Relocation Rent Assistance (4 households).……..$ 2,350 Replacement mobile homes (2 households)……...$14,500

New Hope Case Worker (salary and expenses)…………..……………..$10,5532

Salary and taxes……………………….…………..$ 9,826 Mileage and cell phone……………………………$ 727 Community Gathering Events………………………………………….....$ 519 Labor Day picnic and outdoor movie…………….$ 355

Celebration for one-year anniversary…………….$ 164 Total Expenses………..$46,386

Balance………………..$ 8

Conclusions:

Nearly two years have passed since the Riverside disaster. While life at Riverside is not the same as before the storm, utilities have been restored, all the debris has been cleared, homes have been repaired, damaged furniture and household goods have been replaced, every person made homeless by the event has found permanent housing, and the mobile home park corporation is still solvent. Although original estimates suggested that it would take at least 18 months to arrive at this place, the RLTRO organization completed most of its work by spring of 2015 and the RLTRO board held its last meeting in March of 2015. By almost every measure, the disaster response effort has been a remarkable success.

Looking back, it would be useful to identify some of the lessons that can be drawn from the Riverside experience.

1. The presence of a well-established service agency in the area was key to the success of RLTRO’s efforts. New Hope Resource Center had an experienced and trusted case manager; the center was a

2 The case worker costs of $10,553 in this statement do not reflect the total amount of hours Janeen Leachman devoted to the Riverside project over 18 months. New Hope Resource Center covered some of the case worker costs because the people living at Riverside are part of New Hope’s regular client base.

recognized 501(c)3, capable of receiving and managing funds; New Hope had an existing support base of 16 area churches; and New Hope had a long-standing relationship with various country and state agencies. Most important, New Hope had established a relationship of trust with park residents that reached back over many years. All of these factors were essential resources enabling RLTRO to begin work immediately, efficiently, and effectively. It should also be noted that New Hope volunteer Peggy McCandless served an essential role as the RLTRO’s record keeper and secretary. New Hope board chair Julie Borrevik and board member Glenn Lockwood (also pastor of Country Church of the Open Bible Church which has an outreach at Riverside) provided invaluable input at RLTRO meetings.

2. The presence of highly organized and easily mobilized church agencies was also essential to the success of RLTRO’s operations. Within days after the windstorm, Art Smalley, head of the Knights of Columbus at St. Joseph Catholic Church, organized the relocation of people’s possessions to safe storage facilities. With equal speed, Jim Palmer Sr. from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was able to purchase generators and bring a truck load of food supplies. As a deacon at Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church, Janet Yoder organized all of the churches to bring in daily hot meals until the utility company was able to restore power to the park. Mennonite disaster workers from the Newport, Washington area responded quickly, effectively, and without fanfare to help clear up debris.

3. The active cooperation of state and county government was also important to RLTRO’s success. Randy Vissia, the Spokane County Building and Code Enforcement Director, and Chris Barnes of Spokane County Emergency Management offered valuable guidance and worked with the Riverside mobile home residents and management in a compassionate and responsive manner. Their understanding of state and county regulations regarding safety and sanitation, especially the particular regulations regarding mobile homes, enabled the RLTRO board to make wise decisions regarding clean up, tree removal, construction work on damaged homes, and the removal of homes that could not be repaired. The work of Kim Westphall from Spokane Neighborhood Action Program (SNAP) was a key factor in relocating a number of families to affordable and permanent housing.

4. The support and advice from a national disaster response organization enabled local groups and individuals to organize quickly and effectively. Mike Bullard of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) offered local volunteers a template that provided a focus and administrative structure for RLTRO work. As a member of VOAD, Mike was also able to point RLTRO to national sources of funding.

5. The positive response of individuals, service clubs, local churches, and denominations to requests for funds enabled RLTRO to provide sufficient assistance. Because of the scope of the disaster, tens of thousands of dollars were needed for the work of ensuring shelter, security, sanitation. The grant of $5,000 from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance—promised within hours after the grant request was received at the national office--was a critical factor enabling RLTRO to organize and to respond to immediate needs. The generous pledge of $20,000 from the United Methodist Church Northwest Conference Disaster Response Fund funded both many hours of case management staff time and the actual work of repairing homes. Stan Norman and Gerri Harvil, co-pastors at the Sandpoint United Methodist Church, were instrumental in obtaining this grant. The fact that both grants—from the Presbyterian Church and from the Methodist Church—came so quickly and with very flexible guidelines enabled RLTRO to begin work immediately and in ways that were appropriate to local needs. In addition to these funds, the generosity of the Spokane community was vitally important to the success of the recovery effort. As soon as people in the Spokane area learned of the damage at Riverside, individuals, families, and local churches sent money to New Hope. Nearly $25,000 was raised in this way.

6. The active participation by residents affected by the storm damage was also key to the effectiveness of RLTRO efforts. Within hours after the storm hit, park residents Brian Steenhard and Lonnie Jones set up a remarkably well-run food storage and cooking facility. Not only did their work utilize food that otherwise might have been lost, their efforts were a substantial morale boaster for the community. Sam

Wallace, a home owner in the village, and Sandy McCoin, park manager, served on the RLTRO board and worked effectively to identify needs and offer advice about best practices.

7. The willingness of people to donate their labor and skill was another critical factor in the success of RLTRO. While many individuals offered their help, the work of one person stands out. John Keith, a retired contractor and industrial arts teacher, provided expert advice about what repairs could and should be done, effectively managed volunteers, and spent countless hours doing construction work himself. Along with Janeen Leachman of New Hope, John was absolutely key to the work of RLTRO.

Final Comment:

We would like to conclude this report with a comment from one of the RLTRO board member.

“It has been a wonderful experience for me to work with the remarkable folks that made up the RLTRO organization! This is a great example of what can be done when we disregard doctrinal differences and work together in Christ-like service to our fellow travelers.”

John Yoder and Brad BealCo-Chairs, Riverside Long Term Recovery OrganizationDecember 20, 2015

Labor Day Gathering 2014 at Riverside Community Center (two weeks after the storm)