On Wednesday May 4, he started out with just himself, his dog and his black pickup.
On Wednesday May 4, he started out with just himself, his dog and his black pickup.
By Thursday, just 24 hours later, Jordon Rhude, 21, who is collecting donations to take to people impacted by wildfires in Fort McMurray and area was overwhelmed with help.
His site in the extreme southeast part of the Olds Walmart parking lot was filled with trucks, trailers -- even a camper. Rhude was constantly on his cellphone, coordinating donations and donors while a handful of people sorted supplies piled up in that corner of the parking lot.
"Yesterday I think I just had a few things in the back of my pickup truck; now it's turned into a full-scale operation it seems," Rhude said with a grin as he talked to the Albertan. "I made connections with the right people.
"We made one trip to Fort Saskatchewan last night. The Legion there has taken down my number, my information, and I'm working hand-in-hand with them to kind of disperse these donations all over Alberta. So Olds, Alberta is actually helping provincewide – anywhere that things are needed to go.
"I have a trailer going back to Fort Saskatchewan right now. I have one going to Lac La Biche and Wetaskiwin as well – somebody's holding about 30 people in Wetaskiwin," he added.
He's amazed at the assistance he's received.
"Everything you see in front of you – all these pieces of equipment – have been donated," he said.
"I've posted my personal phone number on my Facebook posts, which hundreds – if not thousands of people by now – have shared and communicated as much as they can.
"Within the town of Olds I've managed to have all these trailers donated," added Rhude. "There's three trailers here; there's the camper trailer behind you, there's a flat deck with diesel slip tanks and gasoline slip tanks for our trip up as well as helping those who are stranded.
"I don't know what happened overnight. People have just spread the word and this community has come together. It's amazing."
On May 4, Rhude said if he got enough donations he'd bring down a school bus he owned.
He was true to his word.
The next day on Thursday the school bus was there, filled with clothes.
"I've reached out to people who've posted that they've made it as far as Red Deer and they're in need of stuff. They (just) had the shirts on their backs," he said.
"I'm going to go visit those people right in the homes they stay in and give them stuff on their way up north."
Rhude didn't get a lot of sleep on the night of May 4.
He says by the time he got back from Fort Saskatchewan it was 3 a.m.
He got a quick four hours' sleep and was back at his post in the Olds Walmart parking lot by 7 a.m. Thursday.
When he arrived in Fort Saskatchewan Wednesday night he was amazed at the scene there.
"It was almost like seeing a zombie apocalypse – something out of a scary movie," Rhude said. "There are just people who have nothing. They all seem like they're dead tired – stressed out of their minds. Every single hotel up there is full.
"There were some big trucks that had big trailers that had fuel tanks, ready to head up into whatever Fort McMurray is right now.
"It's almost like they're preparing for war," he added. "They're loaded up with water and fuel and all kinds of food and they're heading up there into that fire and helping (with) whatever they can and saving whoever they can."
Rhude is blown away by the generosity of the Olds residents he's met since he began his collection campaign.
"The first person who came and saw me this morning was this little old lady named Rose. She works at the deli in Sobeys. She hand-made me a teddy bear overnight after she spoke to me yesterday and saw what I was doing," he said. "She gave it to me and she said it was my guardian angel.
"To say how I feel about Olds people? I think I'm trying not to cry because I'm trying to be strong for our community, representing everyone who's given me donations," he added.
"I have to be strong and seeing people who are here in town who've lost homes up there or their friends have friends have lost homes, it's a world of emotions, to say the least."
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"It was almost like seeing a zombie apocalypse – something out of a scary movie. There are just people who have nothing. They all seem like they're dead tired – stressed out of their minds."JORDON RHUDE
