TOGETHER WE ACHIEVE

On August 10, 2020 a category 3 inland-hurricane ("derecho") tore through our communities, and the Cities of Cedar Rapids, Marion, and Hiawatha were among the hardest hit; the storm damaged or destroyed thousands of homes, dozens of school buildings, and 750,000 trees. Residents had only minutes to take shelter, and the storm raged on for 45 minutes. Three people lost their lives, and many others were left homeless and/or without access to food, water, and medicine.

26 Counties were most affected by this massive, unprecedented storm, from Central to Eastern Iowa. The 120-140 mph winds destroyed 14 million acres of crops, crushed grain bins, damaged livestock populations and farm buildings & equipment, and left hundreds of thousands without electricity for days & weeks.

Starting as a Facebook Group, and growing within just days to over 60,000 participants, the Iowa Derecho Storm Resource Center was launched to help people connect and offer & receive immediate assistance. Since then, the group has continued to organize and evolve into what is now Together We Achieve - and we invite you to be a part of it!