Proud to be a "Moore-on"

Moore Water Tower

I've spent the past couple of days surfing and reading comments on articles about the March 25th, 2015 tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma.  There were some very vicious words for the people who live in this "bedroom" town.

• Why do they still live there?
• Why are tax payers footing the bill for these people?
• These people are idiots for staying there!
• They shouldn't be allowed to rebuild there!
• Why aren't they required to rebuild underground homes?

I actually feel sorry for the people who makes these sort of comments.  You see, I am a proud citizen of Moore, Oklahoma.  I've lived here 42 out of my 47 years. (5 years away due to my ex being in the military and getting stationed, elsewhere.)  I feel sad that someone would be so judgmental of folks they don't know. Bless their hearts. I am sure a lot of these people live in other natural disaster prone areas. There aren't many places in the U.S. that doesn't have their yearly "weather event" or "breaking news".

Let's look at some other events that take place around the country.

• Lower East Coast / Gulf Coast - Hurricane season
• Upper East Coast - Blizzards / Hurricane / Blackouts
• Northern U.S. - Below freezing temperatures for months at a time
• Northwest U.S. - Record Rainfalls / Mudslides
• West Coast  -  Drought / Earthquakes
• Middle of the country - Drought / Fire / Floods / Tornadoes / Debilitating Snow Fall/ Record Heat Waves

These points don't even mention things such as crime rates, unemployment, cost of living, etc.
Most people from Oklahoma, are proud to say they are from here, and wouldn't want to live anywhere else.  It gets in your blood, it's in your roots.  Being from Oklahoma isn't just where you were born; it's a state of mind.  Just as Billy Joel sang "New York State of Mind", we Okies have our state of mind as well.  It's called "The Oklahoma Standard".

Some of you may remember the domestic terror committed on our own soil in 1995.  This twenty-seven year old young woman, felt the ground shake under her feet at 9:02 a.m. while standing at a copy machine, working on payroll. Approximately five miles away,  The Alfred P. Murrah Federal building was bombed. I learned that day what it was to be an Oklahoman.  Instead of people fleeing, ordinary people, not just police, EMT and firefighters rushed to the scene.  Citizens donated our time, money and resources to those in need.  We didn't wait.  It felt natural to us to help others. Our community considered everyone hurt or killed, to be ours. We were one.  We would do what ever it took to pull ourselves out of this hell.  

Fast forward four years. May 3rd, 1999.  One of the deadliest tornadoes, in history, tracked through parts of the metro, to include Bridgecreek, South OKC, Moore, Del City and Midwest City.  Once again, people rushed to the scene.  The outpouring of support was overwhelming.  People "pulled up their boot straps" and went to work.  Church and community organizers used the skills they had used just a few years prior, to help those in need.

As each year passes, the people in Moore are no different than other communities in Oklahoma. We've just had a little more bad luck with the weather that's all.  We tend to wear it as a badge of honor.  We don't look at ourselves as victims, but the contrary, people who brave the storm.  Some people do wind up leaving the area after their homes have been destroyed, to start a new life.  But most still live somewhere around Oklahoma City. So they didn't go far.  We are not moles, therefore, we do not want to live underground (not to mention the beautiful sunsets).  Yes, our insurance rates go up a little, but keep in mind, a lot of the damage is never claimed on insurance. Folks would rather just do the work themselves than pay an outrageous amount for a deductible.  You show me an Okie, and I show you someone who has put up stockade fence, cleaned up debris, or roofed at least once in their life. 

So there you have it folks.  We don't all live in trailer parks.  We don't all milk the government or insurance company because we have a few shingles missing.  We're just good ole folks who love their family and community.  Most of us have storm shelters now, or a neighbor that welcomes us with open arms into theirs.  We are working to get shelters into schools.  Some of the best emergency management people in the country live next door or down the block from us.  

I'm proud to call myself a "Moore-on".  I'm proud to be an Okie.  When the next one hits ... we'll be there to pick up the pieces. You can count on it.