Virginia-based non-profits respond to Midwest following devastating tornadoes
HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — Families are working to clean up after a devastating tornado outbreak in the Midwest as two Hampton Roads-based organizations answer the call to help.
Crews from Operation Blessing and Mercy Chefs are spread out across the Midwest helping those impacted by the devastation.
In Nebraska, team members from Operation Blessing are even helping to build a barn for one farmer in Blair, a rural area north of Omaha, so his animals have a safe place to sleep.
“That area was also really badly hit, but it’s not receiving near the attention that the Elkhorn area of Omaha received,” said Operation Blessing Deployment Manager Bob Burke.
Burke said they originally landed in Omaha thinking they were heading to Elkhorn, but when they got there, the town was already well taken care of by hundreds of volunteers.
That’s when they called around and realized that Blair needed help, and Burke said Operation Blessing called at just the right time.
“They were just basically saying, ‘what are we going to do,’ and we called, so it was really just a neat, just coming together of a need and our ability to support them,” Burke said.
Burke said while out surveying damage they came across a farmer named Joe who needed their help.
“The structure he used to shelter his animals was completely blown away,” Burke said. “His house was damaged, but his main focus was, he wanted to have a shelter for his animals.”
So they went to Home Depot, picked up lumber and everything they’d need to rebuild it and got to work.
“The whole family was there and friends were coming in, and there were kids running around and barn animals coming in all over the place,” Burke said. “They’ve just got a real elemental way of living, and they were just incredibly appreciative of the fact that people were reaching out and helping them.”
Burke said they plan to spend the next several days removing debris, putting tarps on roofs and coordinating meal kits and hygiene supplies. One thing they aren’t lacking for is volunteers.
“Incredible amount of people just willing to drop everything they are doing to rush to the assistance of their neighbor,” Burke said. “It’s really heartwarming.”
Meanwhile, Portsmouth-based non-profit Mercy Chefs is in Oklahoma answering the call to help.
They set up shop in a church in Sulphur and started serving hot meals to those impacted as soon as they got into town Sunday night. Sulphur is one of the hardest hit areas in the state.
Mercy Chefs plans to stay there as long as they are needed. If you’d like to help with their response, click here.
Operation Blessing said they plan to do the same. They are in need of financial donations to help families rebuild. If you’d like to donate, click here.
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