September 2005

FUMA Spirit One on the Road to Mississippi

Submitted by admin on Mon, 09/26/2005 - 3:02pm

In a white bus loaded with clothing and supplies, Fork Union Military Academy's MAJ Steve Macek and CPT Brian Garriss are enroute to Mississippi to join forces with the relief operations of the Baptist General Association of Virginia already in place to aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. They hope to return with young men in search of a safe learning environment in which to continue their college prep education. Schools are among the critically important infrastructure that has been damaged or completely lost in this storm-ravaged region.

Cross Country Wins at Great American

Submitted by admin on Mon, 09/26/2005 - 2:45pm

Braving very early hours, the Cross Country team won the Small School

New Photos Posted

Submitted by maceks on Thu, 09/22/2005 - 1:45pm

CPT Brian Garriss has added new photos from the Gulf Coast region.

Day 6 - "The Salt of the Earth"

Submitted by maceks on Thu, 09/22/2005 - 1:43pm

Before we left the church, one of the bankers I had left a message with returned my call. I spoke of our school and our desire to help. He knew of one family for us to speak with and said he would try to find out more. He would call back later with times. Steve spoke with a Christian Red Cross worker who also knew of someone we might speak with. She gave us the name of a Pastor in nearby Nicholson that could help connect us to him. While getting some coffee, the second banker returned my call and he said that he would try to find some people for us to talk with.

Day 5 - "Searching and Sweltering"

Submitted by maceks on Thu, 09/22/2005 - 1:36pm

The weather here has been sweltering, especially for this time of year. So we ran by the local Wal-Mart super center to pick up some ice. Even early in the morning, the lines were long. Steve started a conversation with the lady in front of us. She told us the story of her daughter and son in-law. She went with them to try to find their house after Katrina. It was hard to find since many of the land marks had been moved or washed away. They found the plot of land where the house had been, but no house.

Day 4 - "It's like a war zone"

Submitted by maceks on Wed, 09/21/2005 - 10:27am

We headed out Monday morning to go to WRJW AM 1320. The church had told us that they would be willing to broadcast an announcement. The radio station was more than happy to help. While Steve penned the announcement, I talked with one of their DJ's. He told me how their quiet little town went from 15,000 to 33,000 inhabitants during the past two weeks. We asked them to run the radio spot until Thursday.

Photos from FUMA Spirit One are posted

Submitted by maceks on Tue, 09/20/2005 - 2:00pm

CPT Brian Garriss and MAJ Steve Macek have uploaded some photos from their trip to Mississippi and Louisiana as they search for displaced students that FUMA can help. Find these powerful images at: http://photos.forkunion.com/gallery/824651

Day Three - Seeking Divine Guidance (and a Wi-Fi hotspot)

Submitted by maceks on Tue, 09/20/2005 - 1:48pm

We awoke early on Sunday morning and joined the other volunteers for breakfast. We then next spoke with the Chaplin of the volunteers who had been meeting with local pastors. He said that he would try to get us some phone numbers of people we could speak with. A father of a former student contacted us and said that he might be able to locate some potential students as well and would be in touch. We next attended the church service where the pastor spoke on Overcoming Doubt. After the service, we had a table set up in the lobby to speak with people about the school and our relief effort.

Day Two - "We're FUMA, not FEMA..."

Submitted by maceks on Tue, 09/20/2005 - 1:36pm

As we were leaving our hotel at 5:30am this morning, The clerk asked where we were headed. We told him that we were going to Picayune, MS and that we were from Fork Union Military Academy. When asked what we were doing, we mentioned that our mission was to find 10 students effected by Katrina and to offer them scholarships to our school. At the end of our conversation, the clerk told us, "I am proud for you." Next, we stopped for a quick breakfast at Waffle House and hit the road close to 6:00am. Our first task of the day was to find a Wal-Mart to pick up a few needed supplies.

Cadets and Staff send the team on their way

Submitted by maceks on Mon, 09/19/2005 - 1:36pm

Photos of the FUMA Spirit One send-off can be found in this photo gallery: http://photos.forkunion.com/gallery/814743/1/36301225

FUMA responds to Hurricane Katrina

Submitted by admin on Mon, 09/19/2005 - 1:20pm

Cadets and staff at Fork Union Military Academy are not unaffected by the terrible effects of Hurricane Katrina, nor are we simply watching the news of relief efforts on television. Cadet Jeremy Thomas' family is from Gulfport, Mississippi and lost everything to storm damage. Jeremy has been in contact with them and they are grateful to be safe, and hope to come to Fork Union this weekend to see their son play in the varsity football game on Sunday, September 4th. It's a hard trip to make at this time, but they want to be with Jeremy for his first home game.

FUMA team appears on local radio in Picayune, MS

Submitted by maceks on Mon, 09/19/2005 - 1:14pm

MAJ Steve Macek and CPT Brian Garriss made an appearance on local radio station WRJW 1320am in Picayune, Mississippi promoting FUMA's offer to accept Gulf Coast students displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The radio station said they would continue to air the recorded appeals throughout their broadcast day. WRJW, known as the "Pic" of Picayune, is a 5000-watt station serving the area of Picayune, Pearl River County, Hancock County, and several Louisiana Parishes.

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