Year in ReviewOctober 2008 - October 2009

The LinnArea Long Term Recovery Coalition (LALTRC) was formed in July of 2008 to provide assistanceto our neighbors as they struggled to recover from the floods of 2008. The LALTRC is a story ofpartnerships both new and old that were formed to re-mobilize the collective resources of these in orderto address the unmet needs of flood survivors living in disaster-impacted Linn County. Businesses,funders, nonprofits, faith communities and local and state government have all worked side by side tofind solutions to the challenges facing us.

The mission of the Linn Area Long Term Recovery Coalition (LALTRC) is to:

Provide collaborative leadership in order to strengthen area-wide ongoing disaster coordinationin the affected areas. The LALTRC will share information, advocate for the most vulnerable,

simplify access to service and jointly resolve disaster-caused human recovery needs.

The Steering Committee includes representatives from United Way of East Central Iowa, Iowa AnnualConference of the United Methodist Church, Linn County Community Services, ISU Extension, HeritageArea Agency on Aging, FEMA, Abbe Center for Community Mental Health, the local faith community,Hawkeye Area Community Action Program, the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation, the Cityof Cedar Rapids, the City of Palo and Salvation Army.

LALTRC worked with Christian Reformed World Relief Committee to conduct a needs assessment inearly fall 2008. 1,292 families throughout Linn County completed this needs assessment. The Coalitionlearned through this process that respondents represented the following vulnerable populations:

Elderly – 18.4%Disabled – 12.1%Acute Medical Problems – 9.8%Single-parent – 9.5%Veterans –7.7%

Sixteen months later, families are still struggling to navigate a complex network of resources andavailability. Individuals who are retired, living on limited income, individuals living with disabilities, andsingle parents all face unique challenges in finding sufficient resources to return their families to safe,affordable, secure housing. Individuals living in FEMA assisted housing struggle with future housingplans. All survivors need encouragement and guidance as they apply for resources, appeal decisionsand make plans for the future. In the most affected neighborhoods, Taylor and Time Check, averagehousehold income is under $35,000.

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Where does the LALTRC receive its funding?The LALTRC receives dollars from numerous funding sources including the Greater Cedar RapidsCommunity Foundation, state Unmet Needs dollars, Federal Emergency Public Jobs dollars, andmany others. These public and private partnerships are needed to help those impacted by theFloods of 2008.

Members of the coalition focus on these key areas: Case Advocacy, Volunteer Coordination, Spiritualand Emotional Care, Crisis Counseling, and Rebuilding.

How has the LALTRC helped withrebuilding?Over $977,000 of funding has beencontributed to the community by thecoalition. 74% of these dollars havegone to homeowners to rebuild theirhomes post flood. The remaining26% of the dollars have been usedfor other projects. For example,specialized work such as electricaland plumbing, rental assistance, etc.

What are the number of hoursthat have been contributed byvolunteers?A volunteer’s time is just as valuableas a financial contribution. For every$1 contributed by donors, volunteerscontributed $5 in labor. 563,000volunteer hours, and counting, havebeen recorded to date by numerousorganizations, including the volunteerhours of groups coordinated by theEast Central Iowa Volunteer Center.This brings a value of nearly$11,400,750 back into our community.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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How many homes have been rebuilt through the LALTRC?Getting people back in their homes has been the focus of the LALTRC. There are currently 343completed construction jobs that have been worked on through the coalition. There are 156 openjobs that are still in the process of being worked on. Just over 3/4 of the total construction jobsneed only volunteer labor to complete the job. The rest have required LALTRC funding to complete.So far, 242 families have been able to move home as a result of coalition work.

What is Project Recovery?Project Recovery Iowa, a disaster mental health program that provided free crisis counseling andoutreach to those affected by the natural disasters of 2008, was sponsored by The Mental Health andDisability Services Division of the Department of Human Services and was paid for with federalfunding. In the local Linn County area these services were provided by Abbe Center for CommunityMental Health. Project Recovery Iowa was completed September 30, 2009. During the 16 months ofProject Recovery, over 6000 crisis counseling sessions were provided and over 25,000 educationaland supportive contacts were made. Counseling services for people impacted by the disasters of2008 are still available through the Ticket To Hope voucher program. Many local counseling providersparticipate in Ticket To Hope. To access this voucher program for counseling services call the IowaConcern Hotline at 1-800-447-1985.

What is case advocacy?The case advocate’s role is to work with their client to create a recovery plan, determine their client’seligibility for various forms of assistance, and through that process identify areas of unmet needs thatwould help the client fulfill their long-term recovery plan and become self-sufficient. Case advocateshave worked with hundreds of families, including many who have been FEMA temporary housingresidentsto assist them with their housing plans. Currently, advocates are working with 305households.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - CONTINUED

FINANCIALS

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The LALTRC projects that all available dollars will be expended before June 30, 2010.

Appliances and Household ItemsLALTRC partners have helped flood affected families replace the appliances and belongings they lost.� Appliance Vouchers = Rotary Clubs of Cedar Rapids = $59,000� Appliance Grants = Alliant Energy (administered by HACAP) = $282,734� Refrigerators = Whirlpool = 442 refrigerators� Furnitures and other items = Salvation Army = $81,340

Unmet Needs GrantsLALTRC administered the state Unmet Needs grant program for residents of Linn County. More than1,400 affected households were able to receive an additional $3,581,788 dollars in assistance.

July 2008 LALTRC formedVolunteer Reception Center opensProject Recovery begins

Aug/Sept 2008 Community Needs Assessment

September 2008 JumpStart beginsRebuild Training

October 2008 Eight Days of Hope

November 2008 Limited Case Advocacy Services AvailableHoliday of Hope Fundraiser

December 2008 Community Recovery Center opensConstruction Coordinator begins work

January 2009 Case Advocacy Team in place

March 2009 Unmet Needs grants offeredSpring Break - 5,872 volunteer hours completedLong Term Recovery Summit in Cedar Rapids

April 2009 Volunteer Reception Center - 100,000 volunteer hours coordinated

May 2009 Neighborhood Canvassing

June 2009 Anniversary of FloodsHealing the HeartlandHabitat for Humanity Build-A-Thon

October 2009 Congregations provided more than 1,440 nights of shelter to4,600 volunteers since June 2008

MILESTONES

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Abbe Center for Community Mental HealthAldiAmerican Red CrossAmericorps/VISTAAspen InnBest BuyBills Brothers FurnitureCatholic Charities, Archdiocese of DubuqueCedar Valley Habitat for HumanityWilliam & Gayle ChewChurch World ServiceChurches UnitedCity of Cedar RapidsCommunity Corrections Improvement AssociationCompassion FirstCorridor RecoveryCRWRC

(Christian Reform World Recovery Committee)EFCA (Evangelical Free Church of America)ESCO Electric CoFaithful ResponseFEMAFirst Lutheran ChurchFlood Recovery Office of the United Methodist ChurchFoundation 2Four OaksHACAP

(Hawkeye Area Community Action Program)Hands On Disaster ResponseHawkeye Labor CouncilHeritage Area Agency on AgingHillside Wesleyan ChurchHome DepotHorizonsHoward JohnsonHy-VeeInter Religious CouncilIowa Department of Human Services

Iowa Disaster Human Resource Council (IDHRC)Iowa State University ExtensionIowa Workforce DevelopmentJeff Jones Consignment FurnitureLinn County Community ServicesLinn County EMA (Emergency Management Agency)Linn County MHDD

(Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities)Linn County Nonprofit Resource CenterLutheran Disaster ResponseMatthew 25 Ministry HubMenardsMercy Medical CenterMercy Response/ Vineyard ChurchMission North America/Presbyterian Church in AmericaOlivet Presbyterian ChurchPlumb Supply CompanyPlumber’s and Pipe Fitters UnionPresbyterian Disaster ResponseRebuild Iowa OfficeRetired ElectriciansRetired PlumbersRoom MakersSalvation ArmySchimberg CoServe the CitySlumberlandSt. Luke’s HospitalSt. Mark’s Lutheran ChurchStuff Etc.Temple JudahThe Greater Cedar Rapids Community FoundationUnited Way of East Central IowaWalmartWaypoint ServicesWestminster Presbyterian ChurchWhirlpool

THANK YOU ALL WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO RECOVERY

And a special thank you to any who might not be listed here but worked quietly and diligently for family,friends and neighbors - we know there are so many that we have missed.

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LINN AREA LONG TERM RECOVERY COALITIONSTEERING COMMITTEE

Linn Area Long Term Recovery CoalitionHoused at the Community Recovery Center220 6th Street NW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52405

Phone (319) 261-0987

Linda Bigley Iowa State University Extension

Rev. Tom Capo Faithful Response

Jane Drapeaux, Vice Chair Hawkeye Area Community Action Program

Faye Dykema City of Palo and CRWRC

Kathy Harmon Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Dubuque

Ann Hearn, Secretary Linn County Community Services

Carol Helbling, Treasurer AEGON

Jennifer Hulik FEMA

Cindy Kaestner, Chair Abbe Center for Community Mental Health

Sr. Susan O’Connor Mercy Medical Center

Kris Riley United Way of East Central Iowa

Steve Schmitz, Director Linn Area Long Term Recovery Coalition

Liz Selk Heritage Area Agency on Aging

Lieutenant Sjogren Salvation Army

Pastor Michael Stadie Lutheran Services in Iowa

Karla Twedt-Ball The Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation

Bruce Vander Sanden Community Corrections Improvement Association

Becky Wood Iowa Annual Conference The United Methodist Church

Leslie Wright, Past Chair United Way of East Central Iowa