Members of the 185th Air Refueling Wing Civil Engineering Squadron, Iowa Air National Guard uses a skid loader to remove downed trees among downed power lines in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on August 18, 2020. High winds uprooted trees, caused wide spread structural damage and power outages throughout Southeast Iowa. — U.S. Air National Guard photo Senior Master Sgt. Vincent De Groo
On Monday, Aug. 10, a derecho (essentially an inland hurricane) barreled through the Midwest, leveling some of its worst damage, with sustained 100+ mph winds, as it passed over Eastern Iowa, including Iowa City, where Bankers HQ is located. We were largely spared — some staff were left without power at home, some lost trees, but our office is unscathed. We were lucky enough to keep power and internet service, although many in our city remained without for several days.
Just half an hour North of here, where a few of our suppliers are located, as well as several of our sales partners and customers, the situation is a lot more grim. The entire city of Cedar Rapids lost power. Many are still, two weeks later, without internet, and cell service is spotty. Lines at the few working gas stations were hours long that first week. Sales partners and customers across the state of Iowa have been affected to varying degrees by the wide swathe of the storm.
When friends and neighbors are facing devastation like that, it’s easy to feel helpless. It’s the same feeling we all feel, as a nation, as we trudge through month five of the COVID-19 pandemic. But feeling helpless, while entirely natural, gets us nowhere. I am a member of Delta Gamma sorority from my long-ago college years, and our motto is Do Good. I think of that motto frequently in these times of tragedy upon tragedy. It’s so simple, but it’s our best, and often only, choice. And one powerful way to do good is through promo.