Mount Si athletes make a difference Team pitches in on flood cleanup

Along with the damage suffered, the defining story of the Valley’s January flood was the effort made by locals who helped those in need clean up their property and get rid of damaged items.

By Rhett Workman • January 20, 2009 4:59 pm
Mount Si High School girls basketball players and junior varsity head coach Larry White helped Snoqualmie residents clean up following the recent flooding. From left are Haley Chase
Mount Si High School girls basketball players and junior varsity head coach Larry White helped Snoqualmie residents clean up following the recent flooding. From left are Haley Chase

Along with the damage suffered, the defining story of the Valley’s January flood was the effort made by locals who helped those in need clean up their property and get rid of damaged items.

Among those Valleyites who pitched in and helped in the clean-up efforts in Snoqualmie were members of Mount Si High School’s junior varsity and varsity girls basketball teams, along with their coach, Larry White.

White, a longtime coach at the school, said the efforts were the team’s way of giving back to the community.

“I’ve always been about trying to teach the kids life lessons, something that they’re going to be able to take with them away from the sport,” said White, who has coached for the past eight years.

“We’ve been talking for a couple of weeks about what we were going to do as a team, to try and give back to the community. We had this flood, and the girls all decided that it would be a great thing for us to go out and take a look.

“They all walked away with a great appreciation and the fact that we’re pretty lucky none of us were affected by that flood,” White said.

Players worked hard to help those in need.

“We helped people take out all their furniture and insulation, and everything that was ruined by the flood,” said sophomore forward Haley Chase.

“It was amazing to see people having to throw away their refrigerators and ovens and all the things that cost a lot of money, that they just had to get rid of,” she added.

White, who works for the city of Snoqualmie off the court, was amazed at what he saw.

In 11 years with the city, “this is by far the worst flood that I’ve seen,” White said. “There was only one dry spot in the entire city.

“There’s a lot of damage and a lot of devastation, and it’s going to take a long time for a lot of these people to get back on their feet,” he added.

Freshman forward Jordan Riley was pleased to help out.

“I think it was a really great experience, and I was happy to see that our team was ready to come and help,” she said.

Chase praised the community.

“The flood really brought out the best in everyone, and they all came out to help those in need,” she said.

White summed it up best: “I put in about 60 hours of overtime and it was just great to hang out with my team and see them being willing to give for somebody else.

“It was really nice,” he added.

In addition to Chase and Riley, teammates Shelby Peerboom, Megan Macholtz and Maggie Robinson, along with varsity players Emily Ferree and Hailey Eddings, assisted in the efforts to help Snoqualmie residents clean up their flood-damaged homes and property.