Moving In, Spreading the spirit, Going Legit

Sorry for slacking off my posts, I have been travelling around and write this post from Brisbane Airport.

The first of our residents moved into the portable chalets today now they are wired, plumbed and have steps in accordance with all the safety regulations. We are still running off generators and the power is on track for Friday.

The next lot of semi permanent units are in construction and our first two are furnished and occupied. It is really heart warming to see the smiles of the residents and having had a tour courtesy of Michael and Sharon, I can say they are very good. They have kitchens, bathrooms, lounge and two bedrooms.

I had to do a presentation today called "Innovation in a Crisis", and rather than talk about the Financial Crisis, I showed them some of the videos and photos from Flowerdale, in my opinion a much greater crisis. I talked about the spirit of the town from the early days when the locals fought the fires to save the school, hall and pub with no training and little equipment. I also showed them how the community banded together and have got the temporary village up and running. The key messages I gave was that everyone has the same goal, it is not about heirarchy but contribution, it is not what you haven't got but how you can use what you have, and also setting goals and getting on with it. I also acknowledged the contributions of the donors and supporters who have contributed their time and equipment to make the temporary village a reality. The people of Flowerdale are an inspiration to the world with their spirit and can do attitude.

We also got our Fundraising Permit from Consumer Affairs so the Flowerdale Relief site can now take direct donations rather than pledges. I will have to set up the online payment facility as tomorrow's challenge. Thanks to VBRRA for fast tracking this. Any money raised will go to funding immediate needs of the Village as well as build up some funds for longer term projects that the community sees as a priority as we move into the rebuilding phase.

Anyway hope you are having a good day, we certainly are.