FROM THE ARCHIVES: An Anniversary to Remember

I grew up in Kansas, land of the waving wheat. In all my years as a farm kid, I got used to a lot of oddities: how the fields around my house in the summer time used to make my cousins from the South seasick watching the breezes blow through the bendable stalks, how the old farmer down the street---meaning about five miles away---would move hay bales the size of our house completely by himself with his equally old tractor, and how the sky turned just a certain shade of gray-green when a tornado was headed your way.

Tornados are, in fact, something you get rather used to in Kansas. Sirens and battery-powered radios and discussions about how to cover yourself with a twin mattress while cowering in a bathtub are rather common things in Kansas in the springtime. And, while we all got used to being prepared and being vigilant, we never got used to one thing---the incredible destruction.
I was thinking about all of this today because it’s a particular anniversary: two years since a tornado took out the small Kansas town of Greensburg. The whole town. Completely and utterly flattened; 90% of it destroyed.

Before the tornado, I doubt anyone really knew much about Greensburg, Kansas. A small community in the flat flow of the Western plains, its major claim to fame before the tornado was the world’s largest hand-dug well.

These days, its major claim to fame is new and thoroughly modern: the city of Greensburg is rebuilding itself “green.” The long-term community recovery plan established a sustainable development resource office with building programs that awarded “Greensburg Green” certifications. The city set about finding energy alternatives, including renewables. And they started a grant and loan program for both residences and businesses.

You can check out all that Greensburg is doing at their “Greensburg GreenTown” website. (Just click here.) Greensburg GreenTown is a Kansas-based nonprofit organization established to be “a model of sustainable living for the world.” Their projects include solar panels, silo eco-homes, wind farms and energy efficiency. But, the city is making no sacrifices to do so. In fact, they feel these changes bring a lot of positives to their old town. (Last Thursday, as part of the anniversary festivities and to have a bit of educational fun, the residents dropped a car on top of the silo eco-home. Dropped from a crane with 180,000 pounds of force, the car didn’t make a dent in the structure. The company that built the home wanted to show how much force it can stand up to---even tornado-level force, which has been known to toss a car or two.)
Assisted by FEMA and the State of Kansas, Greensburg notes in the opening pages of the community recovery plan that they have been “blessed with a unique opportunity to create a strong community devoted to family, fostering businesses,working together for future growth.” Rather than seeing the tornado’s destruction as completely negative, the town has grown to see starting over as a chance to make a town that’s smarter, greener, more efficient and healthier for its populous.

As a Kansas farm kid, I have to say, I am impressed that this small, rural community is taking on this unique opportunity to become a shining example of sustainable energy and construction.