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Answering the Call: Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø students and the Great River Flood of 1965

When the Mississippi River overran its banks in April 1965, hundreds of Quad-Cities residents suspended their normal activities to help constrain the rising waters. And they were joined by students from Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø, released from classes to help their college town, which had no levee like it does today.

Dr. Carol Schersten LaHurd was a sophomore at Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø at the time. More than sixty years later, she and her classmate Sharon Anderson Telleen interviewed dozens of fellow student flood-fighters for a story that appeared in a recent issue of the Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø Historical Society¡¯s Chronicle newsletter.

On April 29 at 7 p.m. at Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø¡¯s Lindberg Center (room 204), Dr. LaHurd will share images and stories collected while documenting the experiences of students who helped save Rock Island from the Great Flood of ¡¯65.

The presentation is free and open to the public. Presented by the Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøÍ¶_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø Historical Society.

Students positioning sandbags in 1965
Dr. Carol Schersten LaHurd
Dr. Carol Schersten LaHurd

Location

Room 204

Peter J. Lindberg, M.D., Center for Health and Human Performance

3501 7th Ave.
Rock Island, IL61201
United States

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Tickets

Free; not required

Contact

Brian Leech
brianleech@augustana.edu