Deadliest tornado in U.S. history strikes 'close to home' for Relief Organization

Monday, May 23, 2011


An EF4 tornado cut a wide swath through Joplin — a southwest Missouri community — on Sunday night. At least 116 people were killed and entire neighborhoods were flattened.

“There was no time,” one survivor told our team in Joplin today. The woman then explained how she and dozens of others hid in a church’s hallway. “When we heard the roar of the tornado, we knew we were in trouble.”

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Today, search and rescue personnel combed through piles of rubble looking for survivors. Children worked side-by-side with their parents sifting through what remained of their homes under pelting rain. Some couples could only cry and hold each other. On one house someone spray-painted on the brick façade: Lee is now with Joe — a reference, it seems, to the resident’s death.

Thousands of families in Joplin are hurting tonight. Some have lost loved ones; thousands have lost their homes, possessions and businesses. It’s heartbreaking, but it also provides an opportunity for the nation to come alongside the residents of Joplin to give them hope.

Joplin is less than 75 miles from Convoy of Hope’s World Distribution Center in Springfield. Many of the residents in Joplin are friends who have supported Convoy of Hope over the years as we have responded to disasters in the U.S. and around the world.

Now, it’s time to give back!

Convoy of Hope will do everything in its power to help the people of Joplin recover from this tragedy. But we need your help. Please consider a generous donation today.

Already, we have sent teams and truckloads full of food, water and supplies to Joplin. In the coming days we will do even more.

Friends like you make it possible for Convoy of Hope to respond to desperate cries for help when disasters strike. Your gift today will enable us to continue to say, “Yes!” to families in Joplin and around the world.

God bless you,

Hal Donaldson

President, Convoy of Hope

Copyright Convoy of Hope © 2011 All rights reserved.