DONATION: Eastern KY Flooding
A few months ago, Eastern Kentucky was flooded with tropical-like thunderstorm trains that dumped in some places with more than 12″ of rain in a few hours. The aftermath of the flooding claimed the lives of 37, damaging a lot of infrastructure like roads, bridges, and schools. Knott County had one of its elementary schools and high schools overrun by the floods. Furthermore, Perry County lost everything in two elementary schools. The flood also damaged a multitude of homes, many belonging to teachers. As the Parent Teacher Store – Lexington is the only store of their kind located in the eastern time zone of Kentucky, they have been approached to provide what they can to help out the affected educators. Chriss LaRue from Parent Teacher Store – Lexington sent out an email to us asking for donations for their relief effort.
We whole heartily wanted to help out the schools in need so we sent out boxes of school supplies for the schools in need. Chriss LaRue and Meg LaRue delivered the donation in two deliveries. Each delivery was amongst the three counties that had schools damaged or destroyed by the flash flooding: Knott, Perry, and Letcher Counties. They delivered the first shipment of donations to the Kentucky Education Association office located in Hazard, KY, since the schools themselves were not ready to receive the items. But after speaking with a representative at the KEA office, they said that all the supplies had been picked up. When Chriss and Meg were in Perry County, KY, they were able to see the materials from the first shipment and went to the schools and people who needed the help. Meg has been emailing principals and talking to teachers on their Business Facebook, so they knew about the supplies from the first delivery arriving in Letcher and Knott counties as well.
The remainder of the donations was delivered on September 21st. Knott County teachers and staff (Hindman Elementary and Knott County Central High) came to Lexington the week before to get their supplies, so Parent Teacher Store – Lexington were able to deliver to Perry County (Robinson and Buckhorn Elementary) and Letcher County (Martha Jane Potter and Whitesburg Elementary and Whitesburg Middle). Robinson and Buckhorn Elementary in Perry County are now sharing an old elementary school that was closed when the new Combs Elementary was opened a few years ago. They delivered the supplies for Letcher County to Martha Jane Potter Elementary who is currently using space in Fleming Neon Middle School. Chriss and Meg drove by the Potter Elementary School building and saw how water had reached up to the roof. This area was devastated by flooding; the entire center of the town was damaged and essentially gutted. The state and county are still repairing roads and working to repair the power and water infrastructure.
The principals, teachers, and staff are grateful for our help. Our supplies, educational tolls, and classroom décor have been a boost to these communities and helped them get the students learning in engaging and supportive environments after the nightmare event. Chriss and Meg are so grateful for our help in supporting their fellow Kentuckians during this tough time.
BAZIC Products wishes everyone in Eastern Kentucky to continue to be safe and stay strong during these tough times.
