Calgary Floods and Random Acts of Kindness

Calgary Flood and Random Acts of Kindness

As a born and raised Calgarian, it is unimaginable to experience the magnitude of the recent flooding in my hometown. It is even more overwhelming to witness the outpouring of love, support and compassion from our community.

Over the past few days, we have heard of the generous and heartwarming random acts of kindness from individuals and businesses across the city. Here are several examples that will inspire you:

Lost Heroes

Unfortunately, our community lost a couple of heroes during this unprecedented disaster.

Robert David Nelson, a lawyer and father of six, died when his ATV flipped over while he was checking on his neighbours’ homes.

Also, Jacqui Brocklebank of High River lost her life when she went to her friend’s house to warn her of the flooding. Her friend safely got out of harm’s way but Brocklebank was not so lucky.

We will ensure these heroes will be remembered for their brave and selfless acts.

Food Trucks Rally

As soon as the city went under a state of emergency, our beloved Calgary Food Trucks rallied together and made sure our emergency personnel and volunteers were fed.

They were quick to feed the Drop-In Centre clients when their building was evacuated.

The Calgary Food Trucks also hosted a “flood raiser” at the Calgary Farmers’ Market raising a little over $5,800.

Our Beloved Children

Children are seeing the devastation and want to do something about it.

Even though they are unable to clean up homes or donate, they are finding creative ways to raise funds.

We continue to hear about several pop-up lemonade and juice stands across the city.

For example, Kali and Connor along with their friends Sydney and Zak are serving juice to the public for a donation to help their grandparents who lost their home in High River.

Leading the Way

Many restaurants in the downtown core were not flooded but lost a sustainable amount of business due to the power outage.

Instead of throwing out their food, eateries on 17th Avenue including National, Una Pizza and Market hosted a fundraising bbq for volunteers and local evacuees.

This has caused a ripple effect for the hospitality industry in other communities.

It is the small acts that will create the big change in our city. What can you do to help?

• Buy coffee and treats for EMS workers, firefighters, police officers and military personnel.

• Drop off treats at your local hospital. They are working overtime to cover shifts from staff who are focusing on rebuilding their homes.

• Buy grocery gift cards and randomly drop them off at homes. The power outage has caused many homes to be without foods for days and even weeks.

• Volunteers are in need of rubber gloves, masks, bug spray and cleaning supplies. Put together a care package and drop them off at local community centres.

• Check out my previous blog post on other ways to help at Calgary Flood Volunteering and Donations today!

Have you witness a random act of kindness? Please share with us by leaving a comment below!