Volunteers stoke and tend the bonfire near Jeremy Barnes' house between 麻豆影院 and Lyons, Colo., Oct. 12, 2013. Barnes' house was nearly destroyed in the September flood that devastated the town. Photo by Emilie Bierschenk.
Jeremy Barnes moves from bonfire to bonfire, as nearly 100 volunteers pick up and burn the debris that covers his flood-damaged property.
Since last month鈥檚 floods devastated Barnes鈥� home near the intersection of Middle Fork Road and U.S. Route 36 in 麻豆影院 County, hundreds of people have come to help. On Saturday,聽Lutheran and Latter Day Saints church groups worked side-by-side with University of Colorado Engineers Without Borders students and other community members.
鈥淚t鈥檚 wild,鈥� Barnes said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing. These people - what they鈥檙e doing just today would take me more than three months of labor. They come out, they do this for a day or two days and they鈥檙e passionate about it, they鈥檙e having fun, they鈥檙e thorough. We鈥檝e had at least 400 people put a day's work into this.鈥�
Jeremy Barnes looks on as volunteers from across the Front Range help him rebuild the house that was nearly destroyed in September's flood. Photo by Emilie Bierschenk.
When Left Hand Creek flooded on Sept. 11, Barnes and his family made it only as far as their white Volkswagen before realizing they were stuck.
鈥淲e had to be rescued with our cat,鈥� Barnes said. 鈥淗e was in a laundry basket, and he didn鈥檛 like that at all. The fire department walked us out, and the deepest water I stepped into on the walk out was about six feet deep, but it got deeper after we left.鈥�
Students from CU鈥檚 Engineers Without Borders group, an organization normally devoted to international relief work, said they jumped at the opportunity to lend a hand close to home.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not that we feel obligated to come, we just genuinely want to help,鈥� said Madori Patterson, an Engineers Without Borders freshman. 鈥淭he core of the program is all about helping people and especially when it鈥檚 right in our own backyard.鈥�
University of Colorado freshman Madori Patterson helped stoke the bonfire with remnants of Jeremy Barnes' heavily damaged home. Photo by Emilie Bierschenk.
Naomi Doerr came with nine other members of St. Philip Lutheran Church in Littleton to offer her assistance.
鈥淪ometimes Lutherans are not quick to get out there, but they鈥檒l stay for the long haul,鈥� Doerr said. 鈥淏ad things happen in our lives, but it鈥檚 a matter of what we do with it and how we choose to respond. We all have a need for belonging to something larger than ourselves.鈥�
When Nathan Segovia heard about the flooding, he said he left New Orleans and made his way to 麻豆影院 as fast as he could to help with disaster relief, and lucked into meeting Barnes. He now lives in the empty skeleton of a house that remains, and Barnes has hired him to oversee volunteers and help with manual labor.
鈥淚 came to 麻豆影院 on Sept. 20 and worked in a few places around the city,鈥� Segovia said. 鈥淚 ended up here about a week later and I鈥檝e been here since. I鈥檝e been [Barnes鈥橾 right-hand, doing a lot of the heavy labor and organizing. There鈥檚 so much to do. If I had the ability to do all this without getting paid I would.鈥�
Nathan Segovia left New Orleans to help Coloradans recover from September's floods. Photo by Emilie Bierschenk.
Segovia plans to work with Barnes through the winter and as long as he鈥檚 needed.
鈥淚 feel like I was brought here for a reason, and it鈥檚 incredible to meet all these people,鈥� Segovia said. 鈥淚 got a hotel room last night and had a real shower for the first time in a week or two. It鈥檚 just been crazy with so many people. There鈥檚 been three days in a row with 100 or more people out here.鈥�
Barnes, who was self-employed doing crisis mitigation for companies before the flood, has had to devote all his time since the devastation to overseeing repairs on his home and property.
鈥淚 haven鈥檛 been able to work,鈥� Barnes said. 鈥淭his is my job. I have to save my house.鈥�
The immediate goal, Barnes said, is to eliminate as much debris as possible and minimize fire hazard. He hopes to secure the house and seal the outside walls so he and his family can move back before winter.
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