How WMEAC rounded up over 1,500 volunteers during the Great Flood of 2013

As the floodwaters have receded in Grand Rapids, it seems a good time to reflect on some of the rescue efforts and how they came to be organized. Case in point: The West Michigan Environmental Action Council (WMEAC) (1007 Lake Drive SE, Grand Rapids) and its elevator ride call to action.

Sounds bizarre, but it really isn't. Utilizing smart phones, email, and social media, WMEAC staff members sketched out a call to action game plan during an elevator ride down from City Hall, and then disseminated the info to the community at large.

You see, WMEAC organizes two Grand River Green Ups each year that bring out hundreds of volunteers to help clean up trash in Grand Rapids in the fall, and in Grand Haven in the spring, traditionally during Earth Day weekend. But because of flood conditions this year, the Grand Haven event had to be postponed to June 1. This announcement came hours before Mayor George Heartwell hosted the first of many emergency press conferences to discuss the flood in Grand Rapids.

Crisis is the mother of opportunity. Interested in documenting the flood emergency procedures for the development of the Climate Resiliency Plan being written for the City, two WMEAC staff members attended the Mayor's press conference. There, they learned about his efforts to fortify the Wastewater Treatment plant to prevent damage from the flood. Turns out that WMEAC just happened to have 400 volunteers on standby after the Green Up was cancelled. Then came that elevator ride.

City staff quickly recognized the volunteer effort as an opportunity to fortify additional city properties and private facilities in downtown Grand Rapids. By Friday afternoon, the initiative had been organized into three daily shifts of approximately 150 to 300 volunteers each.

"Every once in a while, groups like ours are called upon to help organize responses to environmental catastrophes," says Daniel Schoonmaker, director of member services for WMEAC, "so we're really interested in opportunities to help prevent one, even if it's just to lend an extra hand."

In the end, WMEAC spearheaded what turned out to be a 1,500-volunteer sandbag effort to keep flood waters at bay. "And this was a situation where we were ideally positioned to provide support," says Schoonmaker.


Get involved:

- Join WMEAC.
- Volunteer.
- Take action.

Source: Dan Schoonmaker, WMEAC
Writer: Victoria Mullen, Do Good Editor

Images: Courtesy of WMEAC