HARDWICK – David and Gail O’Brien live on a bank of the Lamoille River in East Hardwick. This year the river rose 12 inches higher than it had in the flood exactly a year earlier. Sandbags protected their house on July 10 and 11, this year, but their four-bay garage and shop didn’t fare as well.
Team Rubicon’s Greyshirt volunteers Pat Sullivan, Michael Fitzpatrick, Brian Whicher and Miriam Greenfield in Hardwick on July 18. The organization was deployed to Vermont from July 16 to July 22, where they were billeted at the Caledonia County Fairground.
Team Rubicon’s Greyshirts set up camp at the Caledonia County Fairground from July 16 to July 22, according to Neil Glassman, incident commander. From there about 30 people each day were dispatched to locations in Caledonia and Washington Counties to assist with flood clean-up, he said.
One of those locations was the O’Brien’s. After the 2023 flood they’d renovated the garage, a former store, in a way that would allow the building to get wet, but survive another flood so they could continue to use it.
It worked. The building made it through the flood, but everything inside was wet and covered with river mud.
Pat Sullivan is talking with East Hardwick resident David O’Brien outside his home along the Lamoille River, July 18. Team Rubicon volunteers helped O’Brien muck-out a four-bay garage that had been redesigned after last year’s flooding to withstand flood events, so the building survived flooding this year, but its contents were wet and muddy.
That’s when the Greyshirts of Team Rubicon went to work pulling everything out to dry. Dave O’Brien said he had been glad to have their help.
Team Rubicon is a veteran-led nonprofit humanitarian organization that mobilized in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Beryl to assist Vermont residents with mucking out homes, temporary home repairs, debris management and other essential tasks determined by local leaders.
“A year ago, in response to flooding, Team Rubicon spent three weeks in Vermont helping affected communities and has continued to support residents in need over the past year,” said Barnet resident Neil Glassman. “We are determined to help those communities again. Our dedication to serving those affected is unwavering.”
Team Rubicon volunteer Pat Sullivan, on July 18, is deployed to Caledonia County in response to devastating flooding that affected the state. He helped residents with muck-outs and debris removal, taking wet furniture, flooring or mud out of the building so it could dry out before a contractor could come in to refurbish.
Glassman began working in Team Rubicon’s volunteer leadership when he lived in New Jersey, before moving to Vermont. He says the group began their efforts on Thursday, July 11, when they began to see the extent of damage from flooding. A recon team visited on Friday, July 12, to identify unmet needs and determined Team Rubicon could help meet them.
Trucks were rented and assembled into four strike teams with volunteers from Vermont, New Hampshire and as far away as Brooklyn, New York. Local organizations provided Team Rubicon with lists of those needing assistance. About 30 people each day were dispatched by Glassman to help people muck out, he said.
Team Rubicon was flagged as a potential resource by an East Hardwick resident a few months ago, said Helen Beattie with the Hardwick Area Neighbor to Neighbor group. Team Rubicon came to Hardwick and made a presentation to the Hardwick emergency management plan group, which includes Hardwick’s Town Manager David Upson and Zoning Administrator Kristen Leahy.
Beattie says, we “were very impressed by their services, alongside their deep respect for local community mobilization and folding in to best support these efforts.”
At the time, no one expected there would be a need to call on Team Rubicon so soon, said Beattie.
She says Hazen Union School is now a potential site for housing Team Rubicon’s work in this region and Neighbor to Neighbor will be putting together a Hardwick area recruitment effort to have more local residents trained and supported so they can be mobilized during “the inevitable next time.”
Team Rubicon serves global communities before, during, and after disasters and crises. Founded following the Haiti earthquake in 2010, the organization has grown to more than 160,000 volunteers across the United States and has launched over 1,100 operations domestically and internationally. Visit teamrubiconusa.org to learn more.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
