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Long-time volunteer and supporter Steve Roche spearheaded an HIM grant proposal to the Geoscientists Without Borders to install 21 seismic sensors, fondly referred to as Raspberry Shakes, to help with the detection of earthquakes. A Raspberry Shake is a small but powerful seismograph used to monitor earthquakes and connects to the world's largest citizen science-based seismic network.
We are so excited to share this international collaborative project was awarded $80,000 from Geoscientists Without Borders over two years. An additional $32,500 was generously provided by private donors and Dr. Christine Ruhl with the University of Tulsa.
HIM, in collaboration with Ohio State University, INSIVUMEH -(the Guatemalan government institute responsible for seismology and volcanology), and the Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala, the group has coined their project La Tierra In Motion to increase the country's resiliency and response to geologic hazards.
The Ohio State University group is led by Dr. Michael Barton and PhD candidate Lindsey Hernandez. Their portion of the project is to install a broadband seismic sensor on Volcan Pacaya and to foster community education on geoscience utilizing student interns from Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala.
Currently, there are three sensors in operation at HIM's facilities in Teculutan, Pueblo Modelo, and Gualan. The two other sensors are installed at Bomberos Voluntarios stations in Los Amates and Cabanas. In addition, there are 11 sensors at INSIVUMEH, and four more sensors will be installed in August and the remainder in October this year.
La Tierra In Motion is excited to report that INSIVUMEH is using the data from the newly installed sensors in their day-to-day monitoring of seismic activity in Guatemala and Central America. During the July mission trip, a seismic event occurred with a magnitude of 4.2 in San Salvador. The La Tierra In Motion sensors provided 26% of the data to characterize the earthquake's intensity and fault slip mechanism.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
- Jacob Cross Times correspondent
To help or for more information, visit www.heartsinmotion.org.
There were plenty of gowns to choose from at the sale benefiting Hearts in Motion, a Schererville-based nonprofit. Karen Scheeringa-Parra, the organization’s founder, said they recently received a donation of 3,000 prom dresses, quinceanera gowns, mother-of-the-bride dresses and wedding gowns they will be selling with all proceeds going directly to HIM. All of the gowns are new or samples.
Angelo Liakos, right, peeks around a large assortment of wedding dresses as his mom Lisa Gover picks through them. Dan Zandstra, who owns Dunhill, opened the shop to Hearts in Motion to facilitate the sale, she said. The sale continues daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Saturday. She described the event as a community effort. Her niece, Laura Scheeringa from Lowell, Michigan, was modeling different dresses to passing motorists on Broadway in front of the store. “I’m hoping to try and help bring people in,” Scheeringa said.
Courtney Fox, right, of DeMotte, gets the opinion of mom, Kristi Fox, left, and boyfriend Alex Dimeglio as she tries on dresses. Scheeringa-Parra said the dresses are all being sold at $50 each regardless of the original price and the wedding gowns are selling at $100. The donation came from a friend who decided to close her Orland Park, Illinois-based bridal shop with the intention of benefiting the charity. “She has been to Guatemala and loved, loved, loved what we do and decided she wanted to help,” Scheeringa-Parra said. Hearts in Motion operates an orphanage in Guatemala, where it also brings medical care and surgical treatment to the country’s youngsters who otherwise would not have access to the care needed. It also provides a variety of community service efforts in Northwest Indiana.
Since many proms have again been canceled, she said some people are hosting parent parties for their teens. Offering the gowns as such a deeply discounted price benefits the charity but also helps the teen who have been impacted by the pandemic and are looking for a release.
Allie Holleman, left, gets some help from Karen Jania, right, as she tries on a prom dress. A handful of brides have also made their way through the business to look for a gown. Scheeringa-Parra said one such bride came in alone as her mother had died. She and the HIM volunteers were able to share the day with the woman and help it be a more fun experience. Clients from TradeWinds were the sale’s first customers. Scheeringa-Parra said before the sale was opened to the public, dozens of special needs clients were able to shop for a dress to their annual dance at no charge. “We ended up fitting all of the girls for free,” she said.
Along with its mission work in Guatemala, Hearts in Motion also works with Northwest Indiana homeless and women’s shelters through HIM’s Schererville resale shop. Women who escape abusive situations with just the clothes on their backs are given vouchers for the resale shop where they can get clothes and things they need for free. Scheeringa-Parra said the organization also helps people transitioning from homeless shelters to a permanent residence by supplying everything they need to get started, such as furniture and kitchen supplies. HIM is always seeking donations of furniture to help with the effort, she said.
“We totally live by donations,” Scheeringa-Parra said. Funds raised through the dress sale will assist with all of Hearts In Motion’s outreach efforts. “Every dress here may be putting a child through school.” The dresses also will help the residents of the orphanage, who must have a job when they turn 18. Scheeringa-Parra said they will be shipping some of the quinceanera gowns will be shipped to the orphanage, where they plan to create a store where the dresses are rented to local girls. Most girls in Guatemala rent gowns for their quinceaneras because they cannot afford to purchase it. The girls from the orphanage will be able to work in the store to learn skills and meet the requirement.
Friends Norma Arauz and Lisa Govea, both of Valparaiso, were browsing the racks of dresses. Arauz was looking for a bridesmaid dress, Govea was looking for fun and to provide moral support. The price was right, but more importantly, buying dress is a way to help out. “This is such a great opportunity,” Govea said. Carrie Napoleon is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
“There is nothing I can compare to being thrust into a situation where everybody around you speaks no English, and you have to communicate really refined instructions about their health,” Neuenschwander says.
We also had general and orthopedic surgeons from the States come down and perform surgery for free. People walked hours and stood in long lines to receive vitamins, Ibuprofen, and various other medications that we are blessed enough to get from stores in America.”
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