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Walworth County cleanup continues, 'Operation BBQ Relief' on hand
The clean-up continues in Walworth County after the deadly storms on July 3. In Como, relief in the form of food is helping people to keep going.
COMO, Wis. - From under the cover of pop-up tents shielding volunteers from the summer sun, a handful of men surrounded a smoking black metal box in the parking lot of Como Community Church Thursday afternoon.
BBQ for the community
What we know:
Wearing a pair of thick gloves, Andy Feest – who sits in front of a computer keyboard by day – opened a door on the box to reveal chicken legs and smoked sausage. Just some of the fare to make hundreds of meals over the next two days for the community.
Operation BBQ Recovery
"We showed up here about 8:00 this morning and started cooking," said Feest, a ball cap and bandanna wicking away sweat. "And we'll do the same thing tomorrow. Tomorrow's menu will be a little bit different; we'll do pork loin tomorrow."
Sitting in her car, food in hand, Judy Buldak took a moment to relax after spending the day cleaning up branches.
"I’m whooped," said Buldak. "I had a tree miss my house by just a little bit, and I had some friendly neighbors come over, chop the tree down, get rid of it. So, I was lucky. I didn't have holes or anything. I just had no power for four days."
Cooking up good food
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Buldak’s pit stop at the church just north of her house was a brief reprieve from work, before returning to her nearby Como home, and starting again.
"It'll take a while, but we'll get there."
Surrounding the church were snapped trees; brush and limbs were piled neatly around the parking lot. Some evidence of the much larger work still ahead for Como, and greater Lake Geneva area, after severe storms began rolling through southern Walworth County last Friday.
Working to clear the debris
"They said there was some feeding needs, to try and take care of some first responders and people that are volunteering, doing cleanup and things like that. So we said, ‘Sure, we can come in and help,’ said Feest, an apt surname for Wisconsin’s regional coordinator with Operation BBQ Relief.
The Kansas City-based charity organization that feeds communities after disasters is cooking up hundreds of meals for communities in need.
Cleaning up the mess
What we know:
Just south of the church, on the north side of Como Lake, streets were lined with piles of brush. The whirring of chainsaws punctuated the air as tree removal crews cut up and removed downed and damaged trees from people’s yards.
Storm damage in Como
The area was one of the hardest hit by the storms.
"We're still recovering from the storm damage," said Town of Geneva Police Chief Anthony Miceli. "Police, fire-wise, we're back up to full operations. The roadways are probably about 90 to 100% open, 90–95% open. Power is up throughout the town, which was our main thing—to get power up right away."
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But nearly seven days removed from when the first round of storms came through, manpower is one of the needs to help clean up – especially for those who might fall through the cracks.
"Because now people have to fend for themselves," said Jeff Berard. "People that don't have enough insurance or they don't have any insurance. The people that don't have money in the bank. The people that don't have, uh, family close by. You know, and they're left to—they're left on their own."
Berard, standing in the middle of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Lake Geneva, was surrounded by large maps of the communities in the area, marked with red tape – signifying some of the areas hardest hit.
Storm damage in Como
Berard, with the faith-based volunteer-led Journey Disaster Response Team, said the group’s purpose is to help survey the damage, coordinate volunteers, resources, and then help people pick up the pieces.
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The response team’s command center, open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., is a collecting point for volunteers, those with carpentry or electrical skills, or donations.
"We mobilize volunteers. We have partners that help bring in heavy equipment operation. And um, and we just basically provide the gaps—to help fill the gaps from that the municipalities really uh, have a hard time filling."
Back at Como Community Church, people pulled in to grab a plate of food, like Buldak – thankful for the help that’s come from near and far.
"I'm good. I'm thankful," she said. "I love it. I've not seen this happen for a long time. And I'm inspired by the fact that people will help each other, even if they don't know each other. And that—that kind of keeps you going.
The Source: FOX6 spoke to the volunteers and Town of Geneva police to produce this story.