July 5, 2013

University facilities are helping with the flood emergency response:

•    Housing 470 displaced individuals in our residences in partnership with CEMA.

• Housing almost 200 RCMP in our residences in partnership with CEMA.

• Providing the City of Calgary with immediate access to the 4th floor of the Downtown Campus to be used as office space for temporarily displaced civic employees.

• CEMA will be using the Red & White Room July 2-7 as a Registration Centre for those affected by the flood to apply for Damage Recovery Funds.

• Providing the University of Lethbridge with office space and instructional space on the main campus (2nd level MacKimmie Link) for summer courses that would normally be held at Bow Valley College.

• Providing Athabasca University with 5 offices and access to several classrooms for exam writing on the 3rd floor of the Downtown Campus.

• Veterinary Medicine has opened its doors to temporarily house pets owned by university faculty, staff and students left homeless as a result of flooding.

• Minds in Motion is a non-profit organization hosted by the Faculty of Science and the Schulich School of Engineering with a focus on engaging youth in science, engineering and technology. Minds in Motion provided a number of activities to the evacuees on campus Sunday June 30 and will continue to provide this support.

University personnel are using their expertise for flood relief:

• University volunteers (faculty, staff and students), particularly from Medicine, Nursing and Social Work are working together in an interdisciplinary fashion to support the needs of those in residence.
  • A medical clinic was established in partnership with AHS and the University pharmacy was opened to provide access to medication.
  • Faculty of Arts providing limited translation services at residences.
  • Other staff volunteers involved in sorting out donated supplies, assisting with moving evacuees in and out of the facilities, cleanup etc.

• SU volunteer student services presented a "Dr. Seuss in the Park", a children's reading and craft program, in the residence facilities Saturday, June 29. The program will also be offered in community parks in flood-affected areas.

• The Wellness Centre's Faith & Spirituality Centre hosted a Drum Circle on Friday, June 28 from 11-2pm in the green space near the LRT station to build community and support the campus community that has been affected by the flood.

• Faculty of Law students are working with pro bono law groups in Calgary and are organizing sessions to provide information and legal advice for people regarding landlord-tenant issues and possibly insurance issues (depending on the experts they can get from the legal community). The first sessions took place on Wednesday July 3 at the downtown campus and July 4 in Okotoks. They will also look to provide similar sessions in other areas of the city, and maybe on campus to help those who are staying in residences.

• The Student Legal Assistance Clinic is also accepting clients.  Law Students have been tasked to research relevant areas of the Law and to conduct triage at the event. 

• Twenty nursing students went into the Sunnyside area on Saturday, June 30 to assist and set up a first-aid station that had a line-up of 20 people in the first 20 minutes.

• Nursing students are helping resettle seniors into their homes in the Golden Age home in East Village; the class works in this particular home during the academic year.

• 49 Nursing students volunteered in shifts to support efforts by Alberta Emergency Management Agency at the Red and White Room and Mount Royal University to register homeowners and business owners for government support programs.  The students provided water and on site health support to the crowds.

• The faculty of Environmental Design is working on an outreach strategy focused on three initiatives - bringing together a panel of experts from design schools in Manitoba, New Orleans and New Jersey to partner with the City on flood proofing, relief and rebuilding; a design studio focused on the East Village area and involving 150 students, government and community; and an international studio to discuss design elements for cities impacted by flooding

• Veterinary Medicine is establishing veterinary teams of faculty, staff and students to provide animal care in flood affected areas, particularly in the Sisksika first Nation and the Zoo.

Members of the university community are volunteering to help out:

• The university is providing faculty and staff with a volunteer day with pay to actively volunteer in flood relief activities.  The day must be taken before the end of August and is subject to a supervisor's approval.  Employees are asked to register through the university homepage.

• Almost 500 volunteers have registered on the university website to provide voluntary flood relief services on campus or at university sponsored flood relief efforts in the community.

• 28 volunteer faculty, staff and students were bussed to the Sisksika First Nation to help sort donated clothing and foodstuffs on June 28.  A second bus of 40 faculty, staff and students, including a contingent from the McCaig Institute for Bone & Joint Health, went out to the community on June 29th.  Two more volunteer bus trips took place on July 4th and 5th, organized by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and the Native Centre.

• A group of faculty, staff and students from Haskayne did flood cleanup work in the Bowness Community Centre on Saturday June 29.  Approximately 30-40 volunteers came out to help.

Members of the university community are raising money and collecting donations:

• University of Calgary Qatar is collecting funds for flood relief through the Red Cross/Red Crescent.

• All university and Alumni Association Stampede events will be used as venues to convey the extent of the university's involvement in flood relief and as a collection point for Red Cross funds.

• The President's BBQ on July 2 raised approximately $2,500 for the Red Cross and 3 large bins of food for the SU Food Bank.

• Archaeology students from the 2013 Cluny Field School hosted a pancake breakfast in Strathmore on Saturday, June 29 to raise money for the Siksika Nation Relief Fund (the field school works closely with Siksika Nation and has for many years). The total amount raised was $3,730.

• SU Campus Food Bank is providing 3-day food hampers for evacuee individuals and families when they leave the university residence facilities.

• Faculty of Law collected non-perishable foodstuffs for SU Campus Food Bank on at July 4 Stampede breakfast.

• Haskayne School of Business students, staff and faculty organized into three working groups focused on immediate assistance, mid-term assistance and long-term assistance.  In the short term, they have collected donations of supplies throughout the faculty.   On Saturday, June 30th, a group of 30 staff, faculty, and PhD students took a vanload with these donations to the Mission/Roxboro area and went through the neighbourhoods providing donations and light cleanup assistance.  They have started a second call for donations in the faculty for child related needs, e.g. pajamas, toys, etc. And collected food donations at their Stampede breakfast Wednesday, July 3; to replenish pantries for seniors.

• Faculty of Medicine is Supporting the Alberta flood relief effort through an ongoing food drive for the SU Campus Food Bank and a series of BBQs in support of the Red Cross; July 9, Foothills Campus Stampede Breakfast, July 11, Walk Wholeheartedly - Rodeo Days and Flood Relief BBQ, Red Cross Relief BBQs - July 23, August 1, August 8, August 13 and August 27.

The Last Defence Lounge Prepares for a Makeover

As seen in UToday, May 3

  

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