New Yorkers ‘pay it forward’ by helping Greensburg rebuild

    Volunteers from around the country worked their way through mud and heavy rain Friday to rebuild the 4-H building that will serve as the Main Pavilion at the Kiowa County Fairgrounds in Greensburg.
    Every year since 2003, on the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the New York Says Thank You Foundation has gone to a community devastated by a man-made or natural disaster to help families and communities with their rebuilding and recovery.
     Jeff Parness, chairman and founder of the foundation, said this is New Yorkers' way of saying "thank you" to Americans for their support following 9/11.
    "New Yorkers are never going to forget what people did for us," he said.
    The NYSTYF chose Greensburg for this year's project after most of the town was destroyed by an F5 tornado on May 4, 2007.
    Parness visited Greensburg in November 2007 to talk to town leaders and determine what they most needed for a rebuilding project. The 4-H building on the Kiowa County Fairgrounds was selected after leaders of the community agreed that the town's residents needed a place to encourage unity.
    Parness said the building was the perfect site for the project because it celebrates the community's culture and history, while also supporting families and kids.
    Children not only benefit from these projects, but they also contribute. 
    This year, 4-H kids throughout Kansas raised funds for the Greensburg project and participated in the rebuilding. Many 4-H members and high school students worked diligently to plant 250 cedar and English oak trees at the fairgrounds.           
    The New Yorkers' annual project continues to grow each year. In 2003, 11 volunteers participated. This year, 300 people traveled to Greensburg.
    About half of this year's group is comprised of Ground Zero construction workers, New York City workers and 30 firefighters, many of whom are survivors of the attacks on the World Trade Center.
    Tim, a New York City firefighter, said he has been part of the foundation for four years.
    "It's something to have everyone in the country help you out, so now we're doing the same," he said.
    This was the first year that Rick Raman, also a NYC firefighter, was able to volunteer for a rebuilding project.
    "I've been trying to be a part of this for two years, so I'm happy to be able to be here helping out the community," he said.
    The other half of the volunteers were disaster survivors who have been helped by the foundation in previous years and now wanted to say thank you by "paying it forward."
    For example, on Dec. 29, 2006, an F2 tornado ravaged parts of central Texas and destroyed the Vincent family home, which was used to house and care for six disabled veterans.
    Last year, the NYSTYF rebuilt the home for Eva Vincent and her family. 
    Eva drove up to Greensburg from Texas on Wednesday to help with the construction. Her mother; her mother-in-law; her husband, James; and their 2-year-old son, Hunter, also made the trip to support the people of Greensburg and say thank you.
    "They helped rebuild my home last year, so we're here to pay it forward," Eva said.
   
Building a national
community   
    Several events inspired the formation of the New York Says Thank You Foundation.
    After Parness' business partner was killed in the Sept. 11 attacks, he knew he wanted to honor his friend's memory, but he wasn't sure of the best way to do it.
    Then in 2003, wildfires broke out in southern California, destroying thousands of homes. Parness' son, who was 5 years old at the time, said he wanted to take his toys to the kids who had lost theirs. 
    The foundation was born as Parness assembled a team and went to San Diego County to help rebuild where 75 percent of the homes had been destroyed. Although the foundation has grown since the first project, Parness said it is still a 100 percent volunteer-based, grassroots non-profit organization.
    In addition to its annual projects, the foundation made nine rebuilding trips to the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina. Volunteers helped rebuild the home of a 6-year-old boy with leukemia in Slidell, La., as well as the home of a 38-year-old mother in Bay St. Louis, Miss., who was battling cancer.
    This year's project is the group's largest to date. To accomplish this large task, businesses from Kansas and the rest of the country pitched in.  
    Lester Building Systems, one of the country's largest pre-engineered building companies, delivered the materials for the new 14,000-quare-foot pavilion on six semi-trucks.  
     "The company is helping Kiowa County and Greensburg bring back a building that serves as a focal point of their recovery," Parness said. "But it's also making it possible for our volunteers to participate in a life-affirming experience and do something positive during what is the most difficult time of the year for them. There is no way to put into words the impact Lester Buildings' efforts will make on their lives."
    Brackney Construction and Supply Inc., the company's independent dealer in Hays, oversaw the project.
    Kansas stores also contributed by donating equipment to the cause.
    RSC Equipment Rental stores in Kansas, including locations in Dodge City and Liberal, provided more than 12 pieces of aerial and earth-moving equipment for use in the reconstruction of the Main Pavilion of the fairgrounds.
     "Our local stores and customers share a deep commitment to helping our neighbors, and we are pleased to provide equipment and services for this effort," said Doug Call, RSC senior branch manager. "We applaud the people of Greensburg. Like the New York Says Thank You Foundation, they embody tenacity and perseverance."
    The rebuilding began Friday and is finishing today. Other activities such as a bagpipe procession, a tree-planting memorial and a greased pig rodeo will take place throughout the weekend. On Sunday, the community will join in a celebration to remember the tornado and honor those who were lost.
    Parness said people are united during the foundation's projects by their tragedies and triumphs.
    "Nothing is impossible, and we are living proof of that," he said.
    Parness said during Sunday's closing ceremony, Charlie Victhers, the construction supervisor for the clean-up and recovery effort at Ground Zero in New York, will drape the new county pavilion with a 50-foot by 30-foot American flag that originally hung from 130 Liberty St. at Ground Zero on 9/11.
    Greensburg's Senior Citizens Center was involved in quilting together the flag that was destroyed at the World Trade Center.
    "This gives more people the opportunity to reach out and participate," Parness said. "They can help bring the flag back to life."

Reach Cherise Forno at (620) 408-9931 or e-mail her at cherise.forno@dodgeglobe.com.