I have spent the month writing thank you notes...65 and counting! Sixty five people, families and groups that came and helped, did laundry, provided meals, sent money, brought furnishings for the house, sent diapers and clothes, babysat, opened their homes and gave us a place to stay, and most importantly prayed for us!
I have been filled with such overwhelming gratitude for all that has been said, done and given for our family. The port-a-potty sent, the travel trailer with air conditioning, the tractor and skid loaders, working in such unbearable heat! Each person so eager to help, offering what they had, and blessing us beyond words!
Within hours of the storm, my brother was on our property pulling items out. He stayed until dark to make sure we got as much as we could before the rain that came Tuesday. He helped us locate the photo albums and the box of negatives. I am so grateful!My sister-in-law came and helped pull out laundry, clothing, sheets and took 21 loads to clean for us. A friend took 8 more loads. Another friend took items to be dry cleaned. What a blessing!
Ben's cousin and her hubby helped us uncover the boxes of paperwork, our taxes, medical info, that kind of stuff. What a relief to know, if we get audited, I have most of the paperwork I would need!
A volunteer fire fighter, someone we had never met before, brought up a truck and watered my garden! It was overtaken with weeds, but we got some pretty tomatoes and onions anyway!
Monday, July 18th, two churches from the area brought over 25 people and lots of machines. They got us torn down to the concrete in under four hours! Below is a picture of the foundation with the house completely removed. They saved us a lot of time and work!
There was so much devastation in the area, it was emotional just driving anywhere. Several other houses were badly damaged. Many roofs damaged. Every farm lost at least one grain bin or barn. And every tree line (wind break) was devastated! A building can be rebuilt in a few months, a tree takes many decades. The tree in this picture was ripped apart by steel siding from an outbuilding.
But the tangible thing I am most thankful for, is the lack of injury. Our area effectively endured a 15 mile wide EF2 tornado for 12 minutes over four counties...and not one person was injured! Not only did no one loose their life, but no one needed medical treatment of any kind! No broken bones, no concussions, nothing! That is a miracle in my opinion and I thank God for it every day!The community is rebuilding and we will recover, but not without the love and support of our family, friends and neighbors!
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