By Chris Jaster
Members of Maple Creek's flood relief fund committee are still trying to figure out what to do with the money that has been raised to help victims of the June 18 flood.
As of the committee's most recent meeting last week, they had raised $71,000 but they were still looking for an area where they could step in to help.
"We can't really set any parametres until we know what people need," said Laurie Leigh, a member of the flood relief fund committee. "Social Services is taking care of the basic needs. PDAP is taking care of some of their needs. We don't want to end up duplicating anything. We're going to have to work to find people who have some losses."
The committee is currently looking for people who have fallen through the cracks in the system. They have considered possibly helping children whose families can no longer afford to help them register for sports or children who lost all their possessions because their bedrooms were in a basement. They also considered helping elderly people who lost everything in the flood.
Nothing, however, has been decided yet and they're going to wait until they get some applications, which will be distributed in September, before making a decision.
The committee is also holding a dinner at the Legion on Sept. 14 at 6:30 p.m. for people in Maple Creek and surrounding area who were affected by the flood so members of the committee and community can hear the flood victims' stories. There will also be an information session regarding the application form, which will be sent to people's post office boxes.
Hans Martens, the minister at the Assembly of God church, came up with the idea for the drop-in supper and said his church and the LifePoint Church would cover the cost of it.
"I had talked to some people in the health region and they said there were still people who experienced some trauma from having lost quite a bit of their stuff and it would be good to give them an opportunity to talk about it and vent their feelings," said Martens, who is also on the flood relief fund committee. "We thought how can we do that and at the same time apply for whatever funds are available and I thought of the idea of having a supper."
Mayor Barry Rudd and Cypress MLA Wayne Elhard will be invited to the supper to hear people's stories and answer any questions.
Until the dinner, the flood relief fund committee will continue to accept donations — which Leigh thinks will reach $100,000 by the time the money is distributed — and try to figure out what to do with it.
"It's just kind of a wait and see right now to see what's out there," said Leigh. "It has only been two months since the flood, so we just need to hang on and see where we can help once it settles down with PDAP and insurance claims and social services.
"We're not really sure what's going to fall out of the apple tree. We have to wait until we get applications in to figure it out."