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Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Participants pitch in to meet food, health and safety needs
By Juan Carlos Rodriguez
Journal Staff Writer
CUBA — Creating a utopian community turns out to be a lot of work.
As the Rainbow Gathering of Living Light picks up steam, and teepees and tents of all colors, shapes and sizes pop up around a large meadow in the mountains outside of Cuba, many participants are spending their time making sure everyone is healthy, safe and well-fed.
The U.S. Forest Service said Sunday that there are already 3,500 people at the annual event, and it doesn't even officially start until Wednesday. The gathering, which began 38 years ago and occurs every year in a different part of the country, usually a national forest, was created to promote peace, love and harmony on Earth. It technically only lasts for a week, from July 1-7, but people began arriving weeks ago and will likely stay for weeks after.
The Forest Service and organizers have said as many as 12,000 people could ultimately converge on the area.
Providing sanitary food and water for a crowd that size is a major undertaking.
Kevin Gobell attended his first Rainbow Gathering in 1992 to make sure that, in his words, "Nobody messed up my woods." Gobell, who lives in Colorado, said he was impressed by how the participants cleaned up after themselves. Now he travels with his family once a year to the gathering and helps cook, build latrines, filter drinking water and clean.
"I put so much time and energy into (the gathering) because I see it as a window to a different way of doing things outside our corporate culture," Gobell said.
He works at Milliways Kitchen, one of about 50 around the camp, where he makes pizzas, bread and soup and serves three to four times a day. All the food is free, provided by the cooks or through donations. Just bring your own bowl and cup.
Gobell said he's especially proud of his water filtration system. He said there are roughly five miles of temporary water pipes that draw from nearby springs and through effective pumping and filtering systems. Gobell's method involves running water through two high-tech Swiss water filters and then storing it in large plastic barrels.
"We just want to make sure people don't get sick," he said.
A couple of hundred yards from the kitchen, a 10-foot-long slit trench serves as a latrine. There are literally hundreds of the trenches throughout the camp site. Ash from fires is placed nearby to spread over the waste. When the trench is full, a layer of lime is shoveled on top and then it is covered over with dirt.
In keeping with the gathering's tradition, there is no hierarchy or real organization in the kitchens and medical facilities. There are simply dedicated individuals who take it upon themselves to make sure what needs to be done, gets done.
Organizers go to great pains to avoid breakouts of illnesses like giardiasis, which can be transmitted through water and causes severe diarrhea.
The camp's medical facilities couldn't handle a major outbreak of such an illness, but they are equipped to deal with most other problems that could arise, from allergic reactions to broken bones.
Teryani, an EMT from Oregon, said she volunteers at the gathering to make sure everyone has a good time and feels safe. Medical and security volunteers stay in touch by radio.
The medical facility operates much the same way as the kitchen, with individuals bringing their own supplies, and all services are free. There are at least two physicians on site who also volunteer. But, as Teryani explained, not everyone wants to see a doctor. There are herbalists, naturopaths, massage therapists, acupuncturists and other healers available as well.
As another volunteer who called himself Jack Spratt put it, all the volunteers are happy to help out to make sure things go smoothly. He pointed to a sign reading "World Peace — the next frontier."
"That's why we're all here," he said. "Because if we can't do it here, how are we supposed to do it anywhere else?"
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