West Virginia: RAMPS Update, Flood Relief Volunteers Needed!

From RAMPS

If you want to come down and volunteer, we can help you make it happen!  It’s been over 6 weeks since severe flooding hit a large part of West Virginia. We’ve been volunteering in Clendenin, Elkview, and Clay County, working with the Roush family, who are from Clendenin and who have been tirelessly organizing work crews and distributing cleanup supplies.

There’s been an amazing volunteer response, but volunteer interest is dropping as the flood has faded from the headlines. Both skilled and unskilled labor crews are very much still needed — particularly people who have experience installing drywall, replacing insulation, installing flooring, building footbridges, or inspecting buildings for other damage; and there’s plenty for unskilled folks to do too! This is not through FEMA or one of the big non-profits; this is a grassroots movement of people helping each other directly to rebuild their community. The destruction of the coal economy is already wreaking havoc in our region. Southern WV doesn’t need any more ghost towns!

If you’d like to plug in with a group of volunteers, get in touch. If you need a place to stay, we can offer our house- about 1 hour, 20 minutes from the disaster area- or we may be able to find you a closer housing option in Charleston. Call 304-854-2621 or email to get in touch with us. For questions regarding what work is needed, you can contact the Roush family at 304-545-3753.

Huge thanks to everyone who’s volunteered with us on flood relief already: Sean, Michelle, Ashley, John, Nat, JSav, Cathy, and maybe others we’re forgetting…

Herbal health clinic, coming in September

We’re thrilled to be partnering with Aurora Lights and Herbal Medics to set up a free herbal health clinic here in Whitesville. We will also be working with the Herbal Medics’ engineering team to set up multiple rainwater collection and filtration systems to support nearby communities without access to clean drinking water.  We’ll be holding workshops and plant walks during the week as well. We’re hoping this week in mid-spetember will be the start to regular grassroots efforts to support public health in the Coal River Valley.

If you’d like to get involved, especially if you’re a WV-licensed acupuncturist or another alternative health practitioner, please drop us a line.

11th Annual Fall Summit, Oct 14-16

We look forward to seeing old friends and new faces at our annual Fall Summit, a weekend of camping, workshops, discussions, storytelling, music, and movement-building! This year it’ll be October 14 to 16, held at Stanley Heirs Park, atop Kayford Mountain. Look for more details soon on our website or RSVP to our FB event to get updates over there.

If you want to be involved as a planner or volunteer, let us know!  If you’re a college student or recent graduate, and you can help us do outreach to folks at your school, definitely get in touch.

Can you donate to sustain our organizing?

The easiest way to show your support for RAMPS projects is to sign up as a sustaining, monthly donor. This allows us to focus less on fundraising and grant-writing and more on the work we love. On top of regular operating expenses and our other projects, such as our prisoner-support hotline, we’ve been pouring resources into our flood relief efforts — we’ve spent hundreds of dollars on gasoline, tools, contractor bags, and other supplies — We could really use your support at this time.

Thank you so much for your past and present support. Encouraging words can be just as important as monetary donations—so say hi, tell us how you’re doing, and come visit sometime soon!

For the land and people,
RAMPS