Harbor Strong
Hello Harbor Springs and all the ships at sea!
There has been a parade of utility and public works trucks roaring into town today. Gleaming bright green semi-trucks with skid loaders from our friends in Kent County, Michigan (Grand Rapids) led the way down Main Street followed by dozens of bucket trucks from nearly as many different utilities.
We hardy bunch in the north called for aid, and boy have our downstate friends answered! It is humbling, heartening, and inspiring. Someday we will return the favor, but for now they certainly have our sincere thanks.
Our community is special to many. I hope that some of the men and women who are rushing to help us have fond memories of camping on our shores. Maybe days on the boat or finding Petoskey stones. Maybe a few remember a special toy they got at the Rocking Horse, or a summer sweetheart met on our beaches. Maybe they learned to snow ski at Nubs. Or, perhaps, spent time with their grandpa hunting in our woods.
I know it is silly to think about, but I bet at least some of the hundreds who are marshaling to assist us have a soft spot for our little piece of the world.
It is those special feelings and memories that have led so many here and have kept them here.
Yes, we are a resort town where generations have vacationed in luxury. But we are far from soft.
We know what bitter cold really feels like. We both make and shovel snow above our heads. We endure the lean times so come July we can marvel at the crowds who have come to join us. We think about wind in knots. Sure we are a town that looks gorgeous with flowers dripping out of window boxes, but we are the ones whose hands are filthy after planting each of them. We trim trees, we stack logs, we dig holes. And in the dead of winter we are nuts enough to sail freaking ice boats!
Okay, now I am sounding a bit Prairie Home Companion. But we do work hard and play hard. We are also kind and respectful of each other.
I know the crews roaring into town to help have a professional obligation to be here, but I hope the speed and great work they are doing has been influenced by the knowledge that we are people can be counted on to return the favor.
Speaking of which, for those able to assist monetarily with the recovery effort the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation has set up a fund to help those who will be in need in the days, weeks and months to come. Visit https://www.phsacf.org/resou.../news/emergency-response-fund to contribute or apply for funding if in need.
A little over twelve-hundred get to call the City of Harbor Springs home all year long. Watching how we have rallied toward one another, opened our homes, leant generators, made meals, cleared roads and checked on the frail is yet another demonstration of how special this place is.
I know we are not trying to show off (far from it) but I bet the crews from downstate notice and are impressed that so few can do so much.
Many of the grizzled veterans who have worked the aftermath of these storms for decades say this is the worst they have seen, and our town was not spared. There is a lot of hard work ahead, but hard work is kinda our thing. We are Harbor Strong.
You are showing why this place is easy to love. Thank you for all you are doing. #HarborStrong