Concordia College

Home Is Where the Sandbags Are

Sandbags got heavier and footholds slipperier after 8 inches of snow fell on the Moorhead region Wednesday. Not even poor conditions, however, hampered the efforts of Cobbers who trudged through snowdrifts to help a place they call home.

Members of the Cobber football team went door-to-door in a south Fargo neighborhood, quickly building up dikes where necessary. Other students drove to the Fargodome do fill sandbags. Sophomore Todd Reynolds, Plymouth, Minn., placed sandbags around the Moorhead Country Club as snow pelted his face.

He shrugged off the miserable weather.

"We're a part of this community," he says. "It's our responsibility to do this."

That attitude became more apparent later in the day when crest predictions for the Red River were raised, prompting city leaders to recommend dikes be built a foot higher to 43 feet.

By later afternoon, a steady stream of vans drove students from campus to a central location to fill sandbags. Reynolds and Katherine Brott, '10, Deer Lodge, Mont., were among those who lined up dressed in muddy layers, hats and gloves.

Yes, wet sandbags are heavier, they admit. Yes, it's cold out. Singing songs, quoting movies and organizing impromptu contests with other volunteers make the work go faster, they say.

Besides, that's what you do when your home needs help.