While most in Westlock struggle to recover from the Aug. 22 floods, two young girls did their part to bring cheer to those affected residents.
Though her own bedroom and most of her possessions were destroyed by the storm Aug. 22, when Calli Hehn, 8, found out that her neighbours had also been affected, she began to craft get-well cards.
Hehn’s mother Kerrie Machalek is still struggling to pick up the pieces, but said her daughter’s spirit has been an inspiration.
“I was trying to explain to her that her toys and clothes and her bedroom were gone. I expected it to be hard on her, but when she got home, the first thing she said was she was going to make some cards for everyone in the neighbourhood,” Machalek said.
Hehn and her friend Sara-Lauren Bowsfield, 7, put together the cards along with some candy leftover from the town’s centenary parade back in July and distributed them to neighbours also stricken by the flood.
Though she should have been distraught by the loss of her toys, Hehn said that helping others in their time of need more than made up for the loss of her personal possessions.
“I just like helping others. It’s actually fun making [the cards] because I like crafting,” Hehn said.
“I asked my mom how to spell a few words, but after that I just kind of wrote it down and made hearts for people.”
Though Bowsfield concedes Hehn came up with the idea, she said she was happy to help and the reactions of her neighbours made the effort worthwhile.
“They were very happy. They said thank you and nice things,” Bowsfield said.
The girls’ effort has just been one part of the recovery process for their own families. In the wake of the flood Machalek received her own helping hand.
“I had some amazing people show up to help. They had pumps and were going door-to-door down the block. One guy was wading in all of this disgusting stuff in bare feet because he had no rubber boots,” Machalek said.
“I was so overwhelmed with gratitude. I wish I knew their names, but I don’t.”
