Spring beach clean-up is an annual rite on the Texas coast, where tourist trash is just a drop in the bucket compared to the mounds of debris, mostly generated by fishing vessels in the Gulf, that wash up on the shores over a typical year. This year the effort has a special meaning, at least along the sections of barrier island and peninsula that were scoured clean by Hurricane Ike's storm surge last fall. This week, former President George H. W. Bush took part in the clean-up on the Bolivar Peninsula. Bolivar was ground zero for Ike's surge, and is still just a shadow of its pre-storm self: of 12,000 former residents, barely 2,000 are now on the peninsula. Rebuilding, at this point, is still just a dream, as residents continue to grapple with basic clean-up. USA Today covers the Bush visit (" Bush Sr. works to jump-start post-Ike recovery in Texas," by Judy Keen). as does the Houston Chronicle (" A needed grooming in Bolivar," by Carolyn Feibel). And the Voice of America covers the slow pace of recovery (" Galveston Still Struggles after Hurricane Ike," by Greg Flakus). Former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton have teamed up on an effort to raise private money for victims of Ike. The fund's website is here. Donations are fully tax-deductible.
