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| Keri Sutter Executive Director |
After the Flood |
2005 was a year for floods. We began the year with the terrible tsunami in Indonesia and the Indian Ocean, and August and
September saw hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastate the Gulf Coast.
Compared to them, Surgite was lucky. Our flood was only a few inches deep, and
damage was relatively minor. The flood waters were muddy, but free from oil,
sewage, or toxic chemicals. Yet, as I sit here, 5 ½ months later, we're still
not completely back to normal. The windows, through which the water entered (the
office is below ground), are still covered with debris. There are smears of mud
on the office door, the baseboards, and the legs of the tables and chairs. I
haven't yet had the time to finish cleaning. There is a pile of moldy music
sitting on a table. Replacement copies are on order, but haven't arrived yet.
Fourteen people spent over 230 hours here during December going through
water-logged papers, boxes of costumes, and company records. We salvaged what we
could, and threw out what we couldn't. We were lucky. It could have been a lot
worse. I can only dimly imagine what those who have lost everything in the
tsunami or hurricanes are going through as they recover and move on.
Moving on takes time and energy, too. If you missed us in your city this winter
and spring, it's because we weren't there. I had to cancel tours to Roswell,
Artesia, and Las Cruces, NM; El Paso, TX; and Tucson, AZ. Flood clean-up took
the time I would normally have used to book the tours. And, yes, I have missed
seeing all of you again. I'll get out your way as quickly as I can.
Which brings me to a third item: our website. It's pretty good now, and is
getting better all the time, thanks to my computer whiz husband, Ross, and our
webmaster, Jim Hammitt. So it's a good place to go to get current information
about our schedule. The address?
www.surgite.com. And if you want to badger me about getting out your way,
email works pretty well: surgite@swcp.com.
Feel free to use both.
Blessings to you all,
Keri