The August 18th landslide claimed three lives, destroyed property, and catalyzed a massive response effort by the city, the state, and the local community. (Mike Hicks/KCAW photo)
Today (08-16-16) is the one-year-anniversary of the August 18th landslide in Sitka. The slide claimed three lives, destroyed property, and catalyzed a massive response effort by the city, the state, and the local community. Many in Sitka volunteered food, shelter, and sweat to the recovery effort. And amid these gestures of aid, one of the most healing agents in the week that followed was words.
In Part four of our five part series today, we want to share some of those words with you. We begin with Peter Bradley, Director of the Island Institute, who compiled a series of Facebook posts written that week in a book called “Notes from the Landslide.”
Peter Bradley: Like many people, I felt helpless in the face of of the loss, uncertainty, and devastation that the landslides brought. I donated a small amount of money to a couple of the funds, called the fire department to see if I could help, and then resigned myself to waiting, watching listening. All the same, I found something to be hopeful about. I was drawn to Sitka Chatters – a Facebook group with a few thousand local members – as a microcosm of the spirit of the community.
Samantha Cox: August 18th at 4:42 p.m. Please list below all homes that folks may evacuate to.
I can stay with a friend, so my whole house is open. One king sized bed and a couch.
Charteris has room.
Pets and kids welcome.
We could take a family of four to six.
We do have cats and rabbits and kids.
My home is very small, but I can offer food, blankets…
Dios este con todos ustedes, me uno a su dolor desde Aca, Mexico.
Reading all these comments is making me cry all the way down here in Florida.
Keith Perkins: August 20th at 3:50 p.m. Two of three Sitkans, the Diaz brothers, are now home. The effort continues to press on for William [Stortz]. The challenge of deep mud and debris will make it a hard one, yet I see the resolve in these volunteers. Closure is important and with this titanic effort by their friends, they are now home. For the families and for the friends, they are home. Together. There is one more Sitkan to bring home and that effort will continue. For now, I quietly smile at that thought that the Elmer and Uli personalities were loud and proud. Always smiling. Always doing. The fabulous Diaz brothers. Truly, their attitude towards life was an incredible one. Cheers to Elmer and Uli for being incredible friends to my sons and to never fearing life and always living it fully. Let’s bring William home.
Notes from the Landslide, published by the Island Institute, is a collection of news articles and web posts written after the landslide. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)
Sotera Perez: The date on this is August, 20th. In a town the size of Sitka, it’s easy to begin to believe that I know every last soul here. I don’t, though. I really only know what I call the 400. And it’s precisely those folks that I know. They drink their coffee in my shop. They buy their books at Old Harbor. And among them, there are a few – maybe, say, 35, maybe as high as 50 – who are the ones who present you with a can of freshly smoked salmon from a jacket pocket, or who wade knee-deep to help you hitch a boat when you’ve never done it before. They pull their work trucks up so you can haul a mattress. Feel comfortable correcting your misbehaving child. Call to tell you they like your show. Ask if you’ve read the latest. William Strotz was one of my 35. I could set a clock by him. Every weekday morning for many, many years, I’ve made him a double Americano at 7:30. When he worked at SEARHC, I refilled his cup at 7:50. When he moved to the city, I started doing it at 7:55. Some tiny, but important part of my life is absent. I’m grateful for my 400 people – and for your 400, overlapping mine, and for your neighbor’s, overlapping yours. These rippling circles on our town pond make us a community that set us apart from other places. What I know about William – apart from his love of strong coffee and scones with nuts in them – is that his love for his people, this rippling pond, was fierce and steady. Let’s throw some rocks for him and make the ripples bigger, okay? Thanks you guys, I love you.
Samantha Cox: Here’s the numbers. 30 people donated auction items. In total, the items and services were worth over $5000. In the days following the slide, Sitka Chatters gained 2000 more members from all over the country–all people who were concerned about what was happening here. The GoFundMe I set up (Sitka Chatters Emergency Fund) raised $14,000 in two weeks.
Peter Bradley: I’m thankful that in Sitka, every argument will have 9000 sides and every tragedy will have 9000 hearts. My hope is that, as we run into conflicts and try to find answers to difficult and divisive questions, we can remember the generosity, kindness, and shared spirit of community that we saw in the week of the landslide.
Keith Perkins: August 25th. The sunset tonight in Sitka…seven days from a horrific moment. The day of warm side. The day that Sitkans help bring our third friend home to his family. The day that marks closure. The day that begins a healing process for the community. Maybe this sunset is William, Elmer, and Uli’s way of smiling at us all. It truly is Sitka being Sitka.
Click here to see a full digital copy of “Notes from the Landslide”
