Dear Geographers: I know that all of you are busy, so I will keep this brief. Below is Dr. John Kupfer's response to our offer of assistance several days ago. His email details the condition of the SC Department of Geography (which appears good) as well as his appreciation for our concern. He notes that his faculty and students are busily assisting with relief efforts in Columbia, particularly their . While the university community appears to be holding up, Dr. Kupfer does point to the the major needs of the larger community and recommends channels for donation. I will be traveling to Columbia at end of week to give invited talk. I will give the Department all of our best wishes. Best wishes, DA From: KUPFER, JOHN [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Subject: RE: UT Geography Reaching Out Hi Derek, I really appreciate your thinking of us during this challenging time. As you've seen from the media footage (and perhaps my own social media posts), this has been an extraordinary event for us, with as much as 20" of rain falling in less than 2 days. The results for Columbia have been catastrophic, and we continue to struggle with extensive damage to our infrastructure and a lack of potable water for more than 100,000 people (we just got ours in Ballentine back today). Schools, including USC, have been closed all week. That said, the university itself suffered no damage and is faring relatively well. Students have volunteered at local relief efforts, and USC staff have worked to make campus as safe as possible for students forced to remain on-campus. The Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute, which Susan directs, has been assisting SC Emergency Management with their responses, and many Geography students, staff and faculty are volunteering in whatever ways possible to assist in helping flood victims. While a number of Geography students, staff and faculty have suffered losses from the flooding, none have been catastrophic as they have mostly involved flooded basements and similar issues. For that, we're all very thankful. I certainly appreciate your offer of assistance, but the department itself is fine. The same cannot be said of our larger community where the worst might be over, but the effects will be felt for a long time as cleanup and repairs will take months to complete. There will be many relief needs during that time, so if others want to help out, the best thing would be to direct their support through outlets assisting those affected by the storms and flooding. The Red Cross and the United Way (https://www.uway.org/news/flood-disaster-relief-fund) both have established programs for channeling money to where it's needed. One of the great things about being a geographer is the sense of community that we share. For example, I remember similar outpourings of concern for those in the Geography Departments at Alabama and Southern Miss following the Tuscaloosa tornadoes and Hurricane Katrina. I truly appreciate your interest in helping out members of my department and community. Hopefully, we can catch up in Pensacola. Sincerely, John ___________________ John Kupfer, Ph.D. Professor and Chair Dept. of Geography Univ. of South Carolina Columbia, SC 29208 [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> 803-777-5234 ________________________________ From: Alderman, Derek [[log in to unmask]] Sent: Thursday, October 08, 2015 8:14 AM To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Subject: UT Geography Reaching Out Dear John: Things have been looking very rough for folks in South Carolina and Columbia in the face of the recent flooding. On behalf of the Department of Geography at Tennessee, I want to offer any assistance we in Knoxville can lend. I am unsure of what you and the members of your departmental community need, but don't hesitate to let me know. I can mobilize students and faculty here to raise funds or gather supplies. I have already taken the liberty of donating some money on behalf of my Department to the Red Cross relief efforts on the ground, dedicating that donation in honor of your Department of Geography at the University of South Carolina. Just know that we are here if you need us. Sincerely, Derek Derek H. Alderman, PhD Professor & Head, Department of Geography Betty Lynn Hendrickson Professor of Social Science University of Tennessee 304C Burchfiel Geography Building Knoxville, TN 37996-0925 Voice: (865) 974-0406 Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> http://geography.utk.edu/about-us/faculty/dr-derek-alderman/ http://derekalderman.wordpress.com/ http://utk.academia.edu/DerekAlderman https://twitter.com/MLKStreet -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- To review the archives of CLUBGGY or Join/Leave the list go to: http://listserv.utk.edu/archives/clubggy.html