Ten years ago this August, the kind of storm that comes once in a century—unless it comes more often--devastated the Schoharie Valley, as Hurricane Irene stalled over the Schoharie Creek, sending mud and water ceiling-high, washing away the Blenheim Bridge, and threatening the Gilboa Dam.
Then came Tropical Storm Lee.
Look closely and we’re still rebuilding.
But without the thousands and thousands of volunteers who streamed in to help—hosing away silt, passing out bologna sandwiches, sheet-rocking walls stripped down to the studs, filling dumpsters with ruined mattresses and carpeting—we’d never have made it this far.
And it’s to those volunteers—30,000 by SALT’s count, but likely three or four times that—a traveling exhibit and year-long series of events kicking off August 27-28 will be dedicated.
SALT volunteers including Sarah Goodrich, Anne Morton, and Lillian Spina-Caza and Ellen McHale of the New York Folklore Society; along with the Schoharie River Center, Schoharie County Historical Society and the Old Stone Fort are among those collaborating on the project.
The multi-media exhibit will build on stories collected in a 2014 MLK Jr. Day event held in Schoharie, adding photographs, newspaper clippings, and more.
It will travel to a handful of flood-hit spots before ending at the Old Stone Fort as a permanent exhibit.
“We want to make sure it’s somewhere for the public,” Ms. Morton said.
Among the things the exhibit will look at is how the disaster was covered by the media, Ms. Spina-Caza said, and how that coverage inspired the thousands of volunteers.
It will also highlight the storm itself, the resilience of those who remained to rebuild, and where we go from here.
“How do we keep our community sustainable? How do we prepare for the next disaster,” Ms. Spina-Caza asked said—though SALT, formed because of Irene, has an answer to that:
Volunteers have been sewing masks and staffing phone lines and COVID vaccination clinics since last April.
The exhibit will be financed with two Humanities New York grants, Ms. McHale said.
She envisions it as a freestanding structure or kiosk people can walk around to view, listening to stories from volunteers, first responders, and survivors.
On the list of year-long activities marking Irene and Lee’s 10-year anniversary will be an online auction and recognition of some of the businesses and first responders who stepped up; a dinner in July of 2022 will wrap it all up.
COVID has dragged out planning, Ms. Goodrich said, and that’s OK, pointed out Ms. Morton; “It’s given us time to really spread the celebration out. It does need to be a year of recognition.”
Ms. Spina-Caza lived the flood first-hand; family and volunteers helped move her family out of their Main Street, Schoharie home and just before Christmas 2011, they moved them back in.
“I’ve always wondered why,” she said. “What made that happen? Why were so many people moved to come in here and help?”
Ms. Morton hadn’t yet moved to Schoharie in 2011.
It’s a question she asks too.
“What I see is a community that steps up and gets things done,” she said.
”Not every community can do that. It’s one of our strengths. This exhibit and the celebration are a way to recognize and thank the people who helped everyone.”