It was 5:04 p.m. Oct. 17, 1989, when the Loma Prieta earthquake shook Santa Cruz County to its core. For 15 seconds, the world shook as cupboards opened, chimneys fell, shelves full of groceries toppled, bridges groaned and cracked and the earth split.
The aftermath of the quake was horrendous and widespread. The power was knocked out to most of Santa Cruz County. Highway 17 was closed with boulders covering parts of the roadway that typically handled about 50,000 car trips from San Jose to Santa Cruz each day. A 30-foot section of the Bay Bridge collapsed, and downtown Santa Cruz was nearly decimated.
In Ben Lomond, Valley Churches United Missions was first on the scene. The organization quickly began to set up disaster services for residents of the valley. Under the guidance of founder and director Annette Marcum, VCUM partnered with local organizations to set up Park Hall as a grocery store and the Mountain Arts Center as a supply store for camping gear.
“We found the majority of people wanted to be on their own property so we put out a lot of camping gear,” Marcum said. “We worked with food banks and the National Guard which brought us water.”
Soon the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the American Red Cross set up shop in the valley.
In all, VCUM distributed more than $581,900 in direct aid to people of the San Lorenzo Valley.
Without the Loma Prieta earthquake VCUM operations director Linda Lovelace would never have found her way to the notable nonprofit.
Lovelace and her husband, Tom, had moved from Ben Lomond to Boulder Creek six months before the quake. They poured money into remodeling their new home including water, propane and heating systems, as well as sheetrock that was only weeks old.
“We were three-quarters done by October 1989, and then we lost it,” Lovelace said.
However, within 24 hours, portable tanks were delivered to the house and the family had hot water and was able to cook on the stove.
And after sitting and playing cards for a while, Lovelace felt restless.
“I thought, we’re good here, I need to go do something,” she said.
She went into Ben Lomond and stopped at the Valley Resource Center and VCUM, the organization her neighbor Gail McCormick had introduced her to before the quake.
“It was perfect timing,” Lovelace said. “I had a need and they had a need.”
Lovelace saw the bustle of activity and how as soon as donations came in, they were given directly to those who needed them.
Tom was out of work at the time and VCUM helped the Lovelace family with money and necessary items.
After the quake, Lovelace began volunteering regularly.
And in 2001, the board of directors asked her to become the first paid staff member at VCUM.
She said she feels guilty being paid to do the job, but loves the work each day.
“As we get older as a community and look around at all the challenges we’ve faced, it’s clear that when the going gets tough this community just comes together with support,” Lovelace said. “If you let somebody know there’s a need, somebody’s going to hear it, and you’re going to be helped.”
