By Sarah Ford | Sonoma Valley Sun
“It was an honor and a privilege to serve,” said Sonoma Valley High School Principal Kathleen Hawing, referring to her role as Shelter Manager for eight days and nights when the high school was transformed into Sonoma’s primary evacuation center during the recent wildfires. And yes, she slept there.
Despite the widespread uncertainty that accompanies any natural disaster, staff and teachers from the high school, and school district staff, created a smoothly running shelter operation that on its busiest night slept and fed approximately 350 people. Community volunteers and countless local businesses pitched in wherever they were needed. Many students showed up to help as well.
Cots covered the gym floor, the pavilion, the library, and Golton Hall (the old gym), creating a veritable sea of multicolored blankets, sheets, and pillows. Alzheimer’s patients had their own self-contained classroom and bathroom, with caregivers watching over them.
The shelter staff, who called the evacuees guests, catered to their medical and emotional needs as well, whether they were families with children or elderly people who were fragile or suffering from dementia. Nurses and EMTs were ever-present, and a pharmacist came to fill needed prescriptions.
The shelter provided three meals a day, and healthy snacks around the clock, as well as toiletries, supplies, and toys and games for kids. Large screens were set up so residents could watch fire updates. In the evening there were movies, and musicians came to sing and play guitar. Boxes of clothing sorted by size allowed people to take whatever they needed. Hairdressers and masseuses even dropped in.
None of this could have happened without generous gifts from individuals and local restaurants and other businesses. Teacher Veronica Gray, who worked every day, said “I was blown away by the number of businesses that stepped up.”
As far as challenges, Hawing cited “not knowing if and when we’d get an influx of people.” As unexpected situations arose, staff had to trouble shoot. When the intercom went down, maintenance staff jerry-rigged a phone so Hawing could make important announcements. When the Internet went down, SVHS teachers created hot spots using their phones. To create soft lighting for overnight volunteers, staff borrowed all the desk lamps from the counselors’ offices. Pets were accommodated (“What else could we do?” said Hawing), and pet food donations poured in.
It all began in the early morning hours of Monday, October 9, when District staff, including Hawing, received a call from Sonoma’s City Manager Cathy Capriola, who conveyed that the high school was needed as an emergency evacuation shelter. Hawing, in Los Angeles visiting family, got on a flight home, arriving at the shelter by Monday afternoon. In the meantime, District staff, as well as Hawing’s assistant Danielle Contreras, arrived with keys to open the gym at 2:30 in the morning. Director of Human Resources Loyal Carlon and Associate Superintendent Karen Strong also arrived to oversee the shelter’s opening. Almost immediately evacuees started coming in, and staff were pulling out wrestling and cheerleading mats for makeshift beds. Then donations started pouring in.
“It was a blur,” Contreras said, as air mattresses, mats, pillows, blankets, and other supplies started piling up.
More school and District staff arrived to help, many taking on leadership roles and, like Carlon and Strong, being on site all day every day. “The school and district staff taking the lead was natural,” said Hawing, “since they know the building and resources, and we all know each other. People who could just jumped in to help.” Carlon, like Hawing, slept at the school. “At one point Loyal was up for 24 hours straight,” said Hawing.
The custodial and maintenance staff worked 12-hour shifts, with 12 hours off, for eight days straight. SVHS teacher Craig Tierney, one of many who were there every day, marveled, “The bathrooms stayed clean and the lights stayed on.” Food Services Manager Cody Williams and other school staff coordinated meals, while the Rotary Club oversaw food donations. District transportation employees helped relocate people.
By Tuesday, the shelter was overwhelmed with donations, and began coordinating with Friends in Sonoma Helping (FISH), who received about ten truckloads. “We were an evacuation not a distribution center,” Hawing explained. “But we were deeply grateful for the outpouring of donations, and FISH will get these to people who need them.”
To help students returning to school this week, staff and teachers have received training from the Sonoma County Office of Education (SCOE) regarding how to respond in the wake of a natural disaster. Printed materials have been prepared for families, to assist them in processing this traumatic event. The Dragon Haven, a classroom staffed by counselors, will be open to assist students who need to talk or just relax.
As Hawing’s assistant Contreras said to her, “We don’t need to do team-building activities this year. We’ve already done it.” Many agreed that the crisis had brought administrators, staff, teachers, students, parents, and others together, as everyone was affected in some way. One teacher said of a student who came to help, “I saw a side of him I had never seen before.”
Meanwhile, life at the high school will slowly get back to normal. Homecoming, which was cancelled due to the fires, has been rescheduled for November 3, and has been modified to include tributes to first responders. While life in Sonoma gets back to normal too, it will in some ways be forever changed by this tragedy, which served as a reminder that life can change in an instant, and that our community really pulls together in a crisis.
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