dearneighbors.com

The Flint Hills Chapter of the ARC has left Rossville now that the demand for our services has declined. The Topeka chapter (cough) will manage the few requests that emerge.

Now that I'm back in the saddle of being an extension specialist, I won't be recording much more in this journal. I will return and post once I have a better perspective of time. I am looking forward to working on the new program that is slowly emerging from the crisis, one that focuses on bringing families in crisis together with local families prepared to help. You can read about it at http://www.dearneighbors.com.

I am not impressed with Red Cross management we have seen out of Topeka. If you, the reader, are thinking about volunteering, ask someone who has been in the system about the person in charge. Does this person work well under pressure? Does this person really care about families going through crisis or is the person "all hat and no horse." We are fortunate in our chapter to have a young leader who has really stepped up and shown great qualities of leadership. I hope he rises high in the Red Cross.

Thanks for reading. I'll be back when I have a better perspective on my experience, when my bitterness toward the incompetence in Topeka has faded. What I remember the most over the last five weeks are the large number of brave and determined families from the Gulf Coast who passed through our office. I need to embrace that memory when thoughts about the wine and brie types who are officed in Topeka intrude. At some point, I will hope for accountability within the wonderful American Red Cross.