Tropical Storm Irene turned many otherwise ordinary citizens into heroes. Organizations also stepped up to the plate. Many became lifelines, both for people devastated by the damage and for those who wanted to help.

Next Tuesday evening, bells will ring in churches and public spaces statewide to commemorate the anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene - and Vermont's ongoing recovery. In many hard hit towns the observances start this weekend, with potluck suppers, concerts, art exhibits - and, in the town of Newfane, a parade.

Towns along the White River Valley were square in the path of Tropical Storm Irene when the floods came last year.

One year after Tropical Storm Irene, the recovery process is still in high gear. It's partly about pounding nails and painting walls, but it's also about planning - and deciding what can be done to minimize the devastation of future storms.

Tropical Storm Irene totally cut off 13 communities and blocked travel on every major east-west route. So it may be no surprise that two of the leaders who rose to the challenge when the state needed to lead the recovery effort came from the Agency of Transportation. 

As we mark the first anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene, Deborah Doyle-Schechtman is reflecting on the changes she's seen since the flood waters roared through her village.

This week, Commentator Tom Slayton visited Camp Plymouth State Park, which is now back in operation, but a year ago was ravaged by Tropical Storm Irene

Many of Vermont's rivers surged across farmland during Tropical Storm Irene, tearing up the land itself, damaging homes and buildings, and ruining crops.

Walk across a Vermont river this summer and you're likely to find footing on stones that were upstream a year ago. Tropical Storm Irene threw them down river, along with trees and roots, chunks of asphalt, parts of houses.

Officials released new figures this week on the impact of Tropical Storm Irene on Vermont's farms.  They now estimate the damage to land, crops and infrastructure at $20 million, and there's still concern about the difficulties farmers face dealing with the effects of Irene.

A year after Tropical Storm Irene turned mountain communities into islands, residents in one partially destroyed White River Valley community are pausing to reflect in the spirit of renewal and resilience, sacrifice and sustainability.

One year ago, when Tropical Storm Irene hit, the destruction wrought along Vermont's rivers was tragic.  But Lake Champlain Lakekeeper Louis Porter of the Conservation Law Foundation says some extraordinary and wonderful things happened as well - some of which have taken us some time to understand.  

Ever since the State Office Complex was wiped out by the Irene floods, the state work force of about 1,300 people has been dispersed across central and northwestern Vermont. Now, only 200 state workers are in Waterbury every day, and the prospects of when others will return are far from certain.

In the weeks after Irene hammered so many small towns across Vermont, Pittsfield became an example of a community coming together. But the recovery has been more difficult than the immediate aftermath of the storm.

In Northfield, homeowners who are part of a FEMA buyout program have learned it will be fall before they can expect to see any money for their Irene-damaged homes. Residents are grateful that the end is in sight. But for some, the months of waiting has exacted an emotional toll.

Greg Sharrow of the Vermont Folklife Center talks about organizing "story" circles over the last year, where people who were affected by Tropical Storm Irene talk in groups and record their experiences.

By the time Tropical Storm Irene swept through Vermont, more than 3,500 homes were either heavily damaged or completely destroyed by the storm. One of the houses totally wiped away by Irene belonged to Jon Graham and Beth Frock of Rochester.

Over the past year a lot of numbers have bandied about in relation to Tropical Storm Irene, but it's a challenge to come up with a grand total for the damage done by the storm.

The Rock River has been destroying homes, bridges, roads and businesses in Williamsville and South Newfane ever since the villages were settled. Deborah Luskin lives on the Rock River, and she credits the river for something constructive, as well

As Tropical Storm Irene approached last year, Jay Craven set out from his home in the Northeast Kingdom, to give a talk at Marlboro College. He experienced the full wrath of Irene and reflects today on what it all means.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Randy Brock says Gov. Peter Shumlin's upcoming tour of 22 communities hit hard by Tropical Storm Irene has all the appearances of a political junket that Brock says "is in bad taste."

Almost a year after Tropical Storm Irene, we get an update on where disaster relief funds have gone and how much is still needed and we hear from ultrarunner Nikki Kimball who ran the length of the Long Trail.

Newscast: Thursday, August 16, 2012, 5:50 p.m.

Every Irene flood survivor has their own story about when they first realized this was no ordinary storm. For Red Gallagher, who lives at Weston's mobile home park in Berlin, the moment came when he saw the Dog River spread like a rising tide over the road and toward his home.

A Pittsfield filmmaker has made a documentary about Tropical Storm Irene, which will air three times on Vermont Public Television beginning Thursday evening.