Blessed to be from the Midwest

Just after 6:00 PM on Wednesday, August 1st, the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, MN collapsed. I for one, am very proud of all the individuals who are involved. Like most people, I have been watching some of the media coverage on the disaster. The media is doing their job trying to get the "stories" which is irritating to me, but it is expected. What I didn't expect to see was the Midwest mentality to shine through so brightly. In other disasters, which I won't mention directly, individuals were instantly pointing fingers and portraying that negative attitude that no one needs to be subject to during a disaster. As I was watching the interviews of rescue workers, witnesses, families who have missing loved ones, and many others, I took note that in almost every case, the interviewer was trying to get details beyond what I perceive as appropriate. In each case the interviewee's refrained from giving such information. I saw many people stop commenting or change the subject, one fire captain stated that in order to be able to maintain her professionalism, she was going to refrain from commenting on that subject any further. She stated that being in front of the media was very difficult for her, finally she stated that she felt that if you seek the lime light, you are not a firefighter. Can you say, impressed? At one point, one of the interviewers commented that everyone seemed to be very calm and in control, it wasn't frantic. I immediately thought, "that is our Midwest work ethic coming through". We are in a part of the country where we don't look for hand outs to get a big job done, we do what needs to be done and we rely on ourselves to get the job done or we find the way. We don't expect anyone to swoop in and save the day. That just isn't our style.

I also watched the interview with the mayor of Minneapolis, again I was in awe. Here is the mayor of a city that has hundreds of thousands of residents and he was discussing the family of one of the victims. He had called the victims wife directly, he knew her name and he referred to her on a first name basis. It struck me because he truly was in touch with that families feelings. He had taken the time to get to know them in a very short period of time and during such a time of tragedy. He spoke on their behalf stating that they just wanted their privacy and that some people will seek out the media to grieve, but in this case, this family really wanted to be left alone. I thought, Midwest attitude again, the victims are not just a number to us here in the Midwest, they are our neighbors, sisters, brothers and friends.

I am proud to say I live in the midwest and I truely feel blessed to call it home!

My thoughts and prayers go out to all the victims and their families. I also pray that the recovery workers remain safe and are able to bring the individuals to their families so closure can take place. My thoughts are with everyone involved.