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Tornado uniTes SC Community By Amy Dean


LikE mAny SPrinGfiELd CoLLEGE EmPLoyEES, Charlene Elvers left work on Wednesday, June 1, around 4 p.m. She reached home just as hail started to fall. What happened next was catastrophic. Severe storms


spawned tornados that cut a vicious swath through western Massachusetts, and the Springfield College campus was not spared. As news and pictures of the destruction surfaced in the media and on Facebook—including the pages of the College’s Springfield Student newspaper and united Campus Ministry and Spiritual Life—Elvers began fielding text messages from Springfield College students and alumni. “The messages were, first and foremost, asking if everyone was oK,” said Elvers, director of student volunteer programs. “Second, people were asking, ‘What can we do to help— not only on campus, but also in the community?’ ” Such an outpouring came as no surprise to Elvers. “It’s


who our students and alumni are,” she said. “They are very service oriented. But, by the same token, it is humbling to know that so many people were concerned and watching out for Springfield College. I’ve heard from alumni on the West


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Coast, Colorado, California, Florida—really, all over. It reminds you how much the College is a family.” Students who were on campus for summer classes or jobs


or who were living nearby wanted to immediately assist in the campus cleanup. But hundreds of large, uprooted, and weakened trees first needed to be cleared. Because the national Guard had been deployed to the city of Springfield, Elvers directed eager volunteers to the American Red Cross. But by Thursday, the Red Cross was overwhelmed by volun- teers. Elvers then spoke with pastor Gregory Dyson, who was checking with residents in the Springfield community and delivering water. He suggested that because many residents did not have power and schools were closed, Springfield College students could provide a valuable service in the community by engaging with its youth.


Josh Schupack ’09, G’12, an AmeriCorps member and gradu- ate student association president, and Dave Burckhard ’11, G’12, who is enrolled in the College’s master of business administration program and served as vice president of busi-


TRIANGLE 1 Vol . 83, No. 1


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