For Washington residents, last November was a rough month. With more than 1,000 houses declared either completely destroyed or uninhabitable after tornadoes tore across the region, many people were left without homes.
This year, Empowered Media will host “Cooking Up Community” at 2 p.m. Nov. 15 at Five Points Washington, a community center in the town. The group, comprised of senior public relations majors Erika Kubik, Anna Wilks, Sam Pallini and Taylor Stephens, created the campaign to bring the surrounding areas together as part of their capstone course.
This event will serve as a kickoff for the week of community events taking place. Working with the Washington Township Fund and Five Points, “Cooking Up Community” will center around creating Thanksgiving treats along with other games and activities.
“The event is focused on bringing the community together to celebrate how far they have come since the tornado a year ago,” Wilks said. “There will be a business showcase so community members can visit different booths and learn about what they have to offer. This is also a way for businesses to get their name out to the community.”
Although the event is not focused on Bradley students, Kubik encouraged students to attend if they could, as many students were also affected.
There were some of the usual difficulties along the way, but Empowered Media succeeded in creating an organic, free-standing event according to Kubik.
“One of the difficult things has been having to adapt our ideas based on the obstacles that come our way,” Wilks said. “It has been difficult, but at the same time, it is giving us great experience on how things happen in the real world with the reality that things will not always go as initially planned.”
Group members said that with all the effort involved, they have high hopes for the impact it will make.
“I am really looking forward to the event,” Wilks said. “A lot of hard work has been put into it, and I am very excited to see how it all comes together. It has also been very exciting to work with such a great community and hear their stories. I hope they enjoy the event and really celebrate how strong of a community they are for coming this far.”
