Othello chamber leads drive to aid flood victims

Manager hopes to fill trailer by Dec. 21

OTHELLO - Victims of flooding in Western Washington may soon find some relief thanks to Columbia Basin residents.

Jan Arriola, executive manager of the Greater Othello Chamber of Commerce, is spearheading a drive to collect items for victims in the areas affected by flooding, including Centralia, Rochester and Adna.

Arriola said she has been talking with her daughter, Dom Walker, who is school nurse for the Adna elementary, middle and high schools.

"Fortunately, she's safe, but she's been helping out a lot of the flood victims," Arriola said. "Being the school nurse, she knows just about every student there is in Adna. She's just been telling me about the devastation over there, and the fact, now that the floodwaters have gone down, the extent of the damage due to mud."

Walker is organizing efforts to give out tetanus shots to students at the schools.

"The community has definitely come together to help each other and slowly we're recovering, but it's going to be a long time," Walker said. "People have lost everything, people have lost their entire homes - the river has swept through and taken everything. Right now I'm at school and we have kids here who have nothing. They left their house with clothes on their back. It's helping the community by giving people simple, everyday items like shampoo and toothbrushes that they lost, that everybody takes for granted, I guess. Anything helps, because these people have lost everything."

Arriola is working with Lewis County United Way to collect items from around the Columbia Basin. Items needed include flat-faced snow shovels, tarps, floor squeegees, cleaning supplies, bleach, rubber boots, hygiene products, nonperishable food; clothing, especially socks and men's clothes, gloves, blankets and Visa or Mastercard gift cards in $25 increments.

There are four drop-off points in the Columbia Basin, Arriola said, at the chamber office at 33 E. Larch St., in Othello, at the Christmas tree lot owned by Jim and Joy Duzon at 1410 Basin Street S.W., at Four Seasons Farm Service, owned by Bernie Martin, in Ephrata, at Moses Lake Family Auto Center at 1571 E. Yonezawa Blvd., and Bailie Memorial Youth Ranch at 131 Memorial Lane, in Mesa.

A Seattle corporation will match any cash dollar-for-dollar given directly to the Lewis County United Way, Arriola said. For more information, contact 360-748-8100 or access the United Way Web site at www.lewiscountyuw.com.

Arriola hopes to have her horse trailer filled with items to take to Centralia by Dec. 21.

"Things are trickling in, but I'd like to get a bigger response, just get as much over there to help these victims as possible," she said. "The kids, they even need school supplies. The high school lost everything, all the supplies, everything at the school, so backpacks, pencils, pens. Anything they need on a day-to-day basis would really help."

"We have wonderful communities over here that are really pulling together and helping each other out, but you can help too," Walker said.

For more information about Columbia Basin efforts, call the Othello chamber office at 509-488-2683 or Arriola at 509-771-1098.