Our LRC Christmas Flood

Our school motto is “Non Recuso Laborem” – I do not refuse the task.  

This morning  was a wonderful example of people coming together to help and not refusing the task when our new LRC was flooded by the Melbourne storms yesterday on Christmas Day…

It was so heartbreaking to walk in and see the damage that had happened to our beautiful new library space and there were tears.   However, at the same time is was  wonderful to have so many of our school staff and their families and friends and people from our parish come in and lend a hand to to help clean up our LRC…how lucky we are to belong to such a special school community that comes together to embrace life’s challenges!  

Thank you all so much….from the bottom of my heart!

Our LRC Christmas Flood on PhotoPeach

Today I said to Miss Chiodi as we were moving piles of books – “Remember when the Story Chair was delivered with a broken leg and you said “Now the Story Chair has a story”?   I said,  “Well now our LRC has a story too!”    

It’s going to be a story with a happy ending… 

 

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

48 thoughts on “Our LRC Christmas Flood

  1. Oh my goodness! That’s SOME story the LRC has to tell … I mean … what are the chances that the ceiling would collapse directly ONTO the pile of newly catalogued books???

    As horrible as this is … the LRC now has a band of loyal friends who have come together to help heal the wounds … and that’s really special.

    … and Hugless Douglas will be sporting a lovely tan when he returns.

    A xo

  2. Hi Angela

    I will have to make sure Hugless Douglas is sunsmart!

    The ceiling actually collapsed on a pile of books waiting to be re-covered or needed new spine labels. The newly catalogued books were on the right hand side and the water seeped along the bench underneath them…so sad to see their soaked bottoms! Lots were books the students had recommended I buy for the LRC and have been badly water damaged.

    I’m so lucky to have such a wonderful people who came in to do whatever they could…

    Kim 🙂

  3. It’s really tough going when such a heartbreaking thing occurs, but your community spirit is just wonderful. Such times really bring out the best in people. All the best. Please give Hugless Douglas a cuddle for me!

  4. Yes Judith – it’s a pretty special community!

    I’ll give Hugless Douglas a cuddle for you and you can give him one in person when the LRC is ready (again) for you to visit…

    Kim 🙂

  5. Pingback: Helping Readers in Need

  6. Oh Miss Yeomans, what a disaster!

    Luckily I read Mrs Hembree’s blog post this morning and I’m grateful that she has come up with a simple way that we can all help you! I look forward to sending you a couple of new additions to your library.

    Good luck with the rest of your clean up. All your PLN are thinking of you and you’re right, it will be a happy ending!

    Kathleen Morris

  7. Dear Mrs Morris

    It was very hard to see our LRC looking so sad yesterday. It is a mini disaster for our LRC, but it can be fixed!!

    Mrs Hembree is an angel and her plan has really touched my heart! It is very comforting to know that we have friends both local and global who care about us and our LRC…and who love books as much as we do!

    Miss Y 🙂

  8. Dear Miss Yeomans,

    I am so sorry to see what has happened to your LRC.

    However like Mrs Morris I read Mrs Hembree post and I would love to send you a couple of books so that you and your library can get back on its feet again.

    You are so right in saying that Mrs Hembree is an angel because I agree. 🙂

    Sincerely,
    AA.

  9. Hi Miss Y,

    Thinking of you at this time. So sad to see our beautiful library and books in ruin. Just sorting through the books and turning those soggy pages made me so sad!

    So happy to hear that others across the globe have heard of our plight and are willing to help. Such a beautiful gesture which we will all appreciate. Thank you.

    Keep positive and remember that we are all there to help rebuild our beautiful Library.

    From Ms. Tieppo

  10. Dear AA

    Thank you for your lovely message.

    It was a sad day for our library, but I have also heard other schools in our area have been flooded too.

    It was such a lovely surprise to read Mrs Hembree’s post and to see how much she cared…all the way from America!

    Thank you for thinking of us.

    Miss Y 🙂

  11. Dear Ms Tieppo

    Thank you for taking photos of our floody mess and for helping with the clean up.

    Going through the soggy picture books was so hard because so many of them were our “favorites”! I will be doing my best to replace them!

    Mrs Hembree’s is one very special person (and Teacher Librarian)

    Our LRC will be the place to be again!,

    Miss Y 🙂

  12. Dear Kim,

    I’ve just seen what happened – all that hard work and then all that water! I’m sure this wasn’t how you were planning to spend your holidays 🙁 It sounds like your friends in the USA are planning to help out with the re-stock – and I’m hoping that I can do something too. Take care and all the best for the clean up. Hoping very much to see you in March next year when I come to Melbourne.

    All the best,
    Jacqueline Harvey

  13. Hi Jacqueline

    Thank you so much for your kind thoughts.

    We can’t do much more at the moment until the assessors come in. The good news is that it can be fixed! It will just take a bit of time and hopefully we will be up and running and enjoying our beautiful new LRC once again!

    Mrs Hembree’s is our angel in Seattle, Washington who loves her library as much as I do!

    We would love to see you in March – you can sit in our Story Chair (as long as it dries out properly!!)

    Kim 🙂

  14. I was so sad to hear about what has happened to our LRC! Wish I could be there to help out.
    From Miss Caruso

  15. Dear Miss Yeomans,

    It’s so sad to see what happened to our new LRC.
    But it’s so good to see that so many people came to help.
    I look forward to seeing the LRC again and I’m sure it will be better then ever.

    From Julian.

  16. Dear Mrs Menta

    You’re on your honeymoon so you shouldn’t be checking your school email!!
    Thank you though for leaving a comment. 🙂

    I’m disappointed to think that I might not be able to start library lessons straight away with the new Preps. Fingers crossed it won’t take too long to get the LRC back to the way it was!

    Hope you’re relaxing and having a wonderful honeymoon…

    Miss Y 🙂

  17. Dear Julian

    It was really hard to walk in and see our LRC and some of our books damaged by the rain. (The LRC definitely wasn’t meant to have big pools of water in it!). I was so grateful to have lots of people help to clean up, We will need lots of muscles again when we put the shelves and books back in the Picture Fiction area.

    Julian, the LRC will be better than ever when it is fixed and we will appreciate it even more after this!

    Miss Y 🙂

  18. Every time we get heavy storms in Melbourne I say to myself “I hope school is OK”.

    On Christmas Night we were busy helping mop up at a neighbours and our daughter’s home. Fortunately our daughter had one dry bedroom so they all slept in the one room on Christmas night. I woke early on Boxing Day wanting to go and see if school had been affected. Driving to school I thought this area doesn’t look half as bad as Eltham and Diamond Creek so maybe the storm didn’t hit Macleod and Rosanna.

    I slowly walked through all the buildings at school. A broken skylight and flooded carpet in Yr 5 classrooms was the first damage I saw. Top Yard was fine thanks to the fabulous big drains that John Ryan, our plumber had installed after the last flood. I walked through the junior building and all was fine.

    I proceeded to our new BER buildings. The ICT lab was fine. I never thought our magnificent new LRC would be affected by the storm. It was a shock and a time of disbelief to see the pool of water in the middle of our new LRC. The LRC office was also flooded and on further investigation one of the Yr 6 classrooms was flooded as well. My first thought was how do I tell Miss Yeomans about the floods in the LRC.

    At the end of the rainbow was a large number of helpers ready to assist with what had to be done to make the LRC safe and clean and remove all the damaged books and wet plaster roofing and carpet tiles. Our builders Kris and Clarke and our electrician came to help. Peter Fleming the plumber came to check the roof and downpipes.

    We have the BEST staff and community at St Martin’s. We know that lots of people have been badly affected by the Christmas Day storms and we pray that they too have been supported with their clean up.

    Miss Yeomans, the St Martin’s LRC will always be the place to be. In good and bad times we will not refuse the task.

    Thank you to the school staff, their family members and the members of St Martin’s community for coming to help.

    Trish Stewart

  19. Hugless Douglas is enjoying relaxing and drying out at my house while Miss Yeomans visits friends in Brisbane this week. He is enjoying the change and certainly is beginning to look like his old self as he continues to dry out. He is looking forward to many hugs when the LRC reopens.
    Colleen Yeomans

  20. Dear Miss Y
    I am so so sorry about what happened to the LRC even though not everything got wet.
    If there is anything I can do just email me.
    1 more thing, today I found five 4 leaf clovers. If you want I can try and give my luck from them to you.

    From Grace (the one who’s leaving school)

  21. Dear Grace

    Thank you so much for your very kind and thoughtful offer of help and also to try and pass your good luck on to me! I think you need to keep your lucky 4 leaf clovers in a safe spot for when you might need them for yourself.

    My good luck is still here because the LRC can be fixed and there are lots of people to help us get the LRC back to the way it was before the storms.

    I hope you had a lovely Christmas and you are enjoying your holidays Grace.

    Miss Y 🙂

  22. Kim,
    This so sad but what an incredible response. The power of tweeting, blogging and online networking is astounding.
    I hope that it has not ruined your holidays and that you get to lie on the beach at some stage.
    We are all thinking of you!
    Verona Gridley

  23. Hi Miss Y,

    What a sad sight to see your beautiful new library looking so ‘wet’!

    I remember that 12 months ago, you were helping the people of Queensland to clean up after their floods.

    I’m glad to see that you have a wonderful community of people to help you restore the LRC to a much happier state.

    I look forward to reading a happy ending to the LRC’s story.

    Best wishes from Mrs N and all the book worms at Clairvaux.

  24. Hi Verona

    I am both amazed and touched by the support of the educators I have met through Twitter and blogging! There is certainly a lot to be said about the power of social networking and and being part of a wonderful online community.

    Some downtime in Brisbane with friends has helped to re-charge the batteries for the job ahead…

    Kim 🙂

  25. Hi Mrs N and the bookworms at Clairveaux

    Thank you for your kind thoughts.

    You’re right Mrs N, this time last year the floods were in QLD. During last week when I was back in Brisbane I returned to the Riverside area to see what it looked like a year on…it was great to see that the restaurants and businesses were back to normal and the City Cats were operating and that the Brisbane River was once again a gentle, beautiful river.

    I keep thinking about the mud and damage I saw when we helped with the Brisbane clean-up and I know that our LRC was very lucky!!

    Miss Y 🙂

  26. Pingback: The Third Gift by Linda Sue Park | The Way Forward

  27. Sorry to hear about the LRC. That’s terrible, and it was all finally coming together! I’m sure eventually it will all be looking as great as it was. We are all more than happy to come and help doing whatever. We are available Wednesdays through to Sundays. Please let us know if we can help. Good Luck!

    Laura, Venessa and Irene Misale.

  28. Hi Miss Y!

    Just returned from my Thailand adventure and I am so sad to see what has happened to our beautiful library. Hopefully it will be up and running in no time. How lucky you are to have all that support to help you with the clean up.

    Miss Valvo 🙂

  29. Dear Laura, Venessa and Irene

    Thank you so much for your kind offer. At the moment we have to wait for work to be done to the LRC ceilings and for the carpet squares to be replaced before we can put back the shelves and books.

    I hope you are all having a relaxing holiday and reading lots of great books…

    Miss Y 🙂

  30. Hi Miss Valvo

    Welcome back from your Thailand holiday! I hope you had a fabulous time.

    Yes, it is difficult to see our beautiful LRC in such a sad state. You can be assured that I will be trying to get our LRC up and running as soon as possible!

    Miss Y 🙂

  31. Hi Miss Y,

    So sorry to hear about our new LRC, it was looking fabulous. I’m glad that not everything got damaged. Hopefully it will be back to normal in time for the prep’s first library class. Good luck!!

    From Emma G 🙂

  32. Hi Emma

    Fingers crossed the LRC will be ready for the Prep classes! It will all depend on how quickly the damage can be fixed and we can put all of the shelves and books back in place. I also have to order lots of new books to replace the ones that were damaged.

    I hope you’re having a great holiday with your family.

    Have you used your book voucher yet?

    Miss Y 🙂

  33. Hi Miss Y
    I am so sorry to hear what had happened to the LRC.
    Shame we didn’t get to see what the new books were.
    The Preps didn’t even have a chance to feel the carpet in the LRC.
    I hope that everything that got soaked will dry in time for school

    Daniel L 😀

  34. Hi Daniel

    You will be pleased to hear that Hugless Douglas and the Story Chair are both dry!

    I did put some of our new books out on the new display holders at the end of the year, but you may not have seen them. I will be able to buy new copies of books that have been damaged and we will have them ready as soon as we can.

    The new Preps will get to try out our brand new carpet tiles when they are put on the floor.

    Hope you’re enjoying your holiday Daniel…

    Miss Y 😀

  35. I was so upset to hear all the sad news about our lovely LRC! I hope everything is better by the time the preps start their journey in the library. I especially hope your photos of Jambo were not damaged. Can you please let me know which year six class also got water damaged. Considering all the sad news I hope your holidays have still been enjoyable.

    <3 Alice M 🙂

  36. Hi Miss Y
    So sorry to see what happened to our beautiful LRC. I felt really sad to see those pictures of our new library. I was actually writing down some ideas for fundraisers and the LRC is at the top of my list of recipients 2 days ago. I was surprised today to find out that a lot of things were damaged especially the books. Because of that, I would definitely try to organise a fundraiser for new books and for repairing the damage.

    If you need a hand with anything, please let us know and my family would be happy to help.

    Love Monica

  37. Hi Alice

    I hope it won’t take too long for the LRC to be up and running and ready to welcome our new Preps and everyone else!

    6AC was water-damaged as well because water from the LRC leaked down into that classroom. I’m sure it will be ready for the 6AC students when they return.

    Jambo’s pictures were a little wet but thank goodness I have lots of photos of him that I can print and put on my desk to help me remember him.

    I hope you’re enjoying your holidays Alice…

    Miss Y 😀

  38. Hi Monica

    Thank you for your thoughtfulness and fundraising ideas. What a wonderful School Captain you are going to be!

    Hopefully the school’s insurance will cover the damage to the LRC and especially help us to replace the books that have been damaged.

    I’m going to the LRC tomorrow to start listing the books that will need to be replaced. I’m hoping we can replace them all, especially some of the older books that might be out of print now.

    I hope you and your family have been having a great holiday…

    Miss Y 😛

  39. Hi Miss Yeomans

    We were saddened to hear the LRC news, and we are happy to help you re-settle the LRC when all the works are completed.

    Please let us know when you need our assistance from Jessica, Anna and Nello Campomizzi.

  40. Dear Jessica, Anna and Nello

    Thank you so much for your kind offer. I will definitely be in touch if we need some help.

    Today I moved quite a few things back into my office which was a positive! We aren’t going to be able to move shelves and books back until the carpet tiles go in and that could be a few weeks yet.

    I hope you’re enjoying the holidays and I’m sure Jessica is getting excited about starting secondary school shortly…

    Miss Y 😀

  41. HEY Miss Y,

    I’M BACK! and I feel better than ever.
    I heard it was hailing like mad during Christmas.
    I was in Delhi, India while all that happened. Apart from the LRC flood I hope you had a great holiday.

    Mehul A 🙂

  42. After all that waiting of the library I think it’s starting all over again. I hope Hugless Douglas is safe and comfy somewhere.

    From Daisy

  43. Hi Mehul

    Welcome back! It’s great to hear you are feeling better than ever. You must have had a fabulous time in Delhi. I’m looking forward to hearing all about it.

    You certainly missed all the weather action on Christmas Day. Sadly lots of homes and schools were damaged by the storms Mehul.

    Enjoy the rest of your holidays….see you soon!

    Miss Y 😀

  44. Hi Daisy

    Yes, I feel a bit the same…it’s like starting all over again! BUT it won’t take too long to get our LRC back to the way it was…I promise!!

    Hugless Douglas had a very relaxing time soaking up the sunshine on my deck at home! I thought he might be going to move in permanently! He is now back in the LRC waiting for us to return to school.

    I hope you have a had a wonderful holiday with your family Daisy…

    Miss Y 🙂

  45. Oh Kim, I am just catching up with Twitter and saw a post about your beautiful LRC! How disappointing, I’m sure you were all gutted. It sounds like you had some amazing helpers and support and seems things will be on the mend soon. Our school also got flooded and many books also needed to be thrown out but these were mainly teacher reference books that were in the Literacy room …a sewerage pipe also burst so you can imagine the smell and the mess. Anyway, keep your chin up lovely, speak to you soon.

    Sue

  46. Hi Sue

    Thanks for your message.

    Sorry to hear about your flooding at your school too. (I’m glad we didn’t get a burst sewerage pipe!) So many schools in our area were affected by the Christmas Day storms.

    The LRC will be up and running as soon as possible…you are most welcome to pop in for a visit then.

    Have a great year with your new Prep W students

    Kim 🙂

  47. Hi Miss Y, I hope the LRC is ok from the water damage. I can’t wait to get back in the Library and give Hugless Douglas a cuddle and read some books too! From Claire W.

  48. Hi Claire

    The LRC is all fixed from the water damage and it’s looking fabulous again! There are some empty shelves in the Picture Book area but we will have the new books in there as fast as we can!

    The LRC is open for borrowing before and after school this week. I’m sure Hugless Douglas would love a cuddle from you! You can borrow some books and check out our new book holders at the same time!

    Miss Y 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *