Woman thankful God spared her life in tornado
Mar. 27—EDITOR'S NOTE — This is the third in a series on remembering the devastating EF-1 tornado that tore through parts of Milledgeville and Baldwin County a year ago.
What a difference a year can make.
This time a year ago, on March 26, 2023, a devastating EF-1 tornado tore down several large trees that crashed through the roof of the single-wide mobile home of Monica Jones on Downs Street in Milledgeville. It destroyed her home and left her trapped inside.
"It's only by the grace of God that He spared my life that morning when the tornado hit," Jones recalled in an interview Tuesday morning with The Union-Recorder. "I can never thank the good Lord enough for protecting me through that storm. I still thank Him every day."
Jones, who has worked as a custodian at Georgia College & State University for the past 13 years and also cleans several doctors' offices in Milledgeville as a side job, said she had insurance on the home that was destroyed by the tornado last year, but because it was so old the insurance didn't pay off much.
"If it hadn't been for my family at Georgia College raising as much money for me as they did, I wouldn't have been able to get a new home," Jones said. "It means everything to me what they did for me. They really came through for me, and I am so very, very grateful to each of them who helped raise that amount of money for me."
Jones said she used all of the money for a down payment on a new single-wide mobile home that she purchased from B&K Housing in Milledgeville.
"They were amazing to work with," Jones said of the mobile home business.
She is now the proud owner of a two-bedroom home that ironically sits in almost the same spot that her other home sat in for many years.
"It's just a little farther away from where my other home was located," Jones said.
Her new home has a new screened-in porch attached to the front of it where she can sit and entertain family members and neighbors. Several new flower beds have also been built around her new home.
Such was made possible by her ex-husband, Tyrone Hartry Sr. and their son, Tyrone Hartry Jr.
"My son and his daddy really came through for me on building that screened in porch and decorating the yard, too," Jones said. "They really made it even more beautiful than it was for me, and I thank both of them so much for what they did. It really means a lot that they care that much about me."
She then laughed and said, "If they had not helped me, they both knew I would have fussed at them."
As her way of showing them how much she appreciates what they did for her, she prepares Sunday dinners for them at her new home.
"They love to come over here and eat, and I love having them," Jones said.
In addition to her immediate family and those she considers family at Georgia College, Jones said she also appreciates what her neighbors have done for her since the tornado destroyed her home a year ago.
"They have all stepped up in so many ways to help me, too," Jones said. "That's why I couldn't move away from here. I love all my neighbors and I didn't want to live anywhere else other than right here."
