(A Chevron off of 15th Sreet)
(The Krispy Kreme building off McFarland)
(A metal billboard pole bent at the bottom)
(15th Street sign, found 5 blocks over)
We ended up walking right into my friends cousin who was helping his friend, a UA student rumage through what was left of her house and belongings. We joined the effort.
Her neighbors who survived were doing the same thing and the neighbors stories who did not survive were told. This is the house of a neighbor right across the street from where we were helping. She ws hunkered down in her bathroom tub with her dog and 2 cats and was able to walk out after it passed...amazing!
This is the house of the neighbor right next door, he and his wife hunkered down in a closet and were completely fine.
Sadly, not all stories have good endings. This is a lot where a house once stood.
It was lifted completely off its foundation and thrown across the street...
Sadly, four students were in the house, three perished (two UA students and a freind that was visiting) and one walked away with minor injuries. Its really quite amazing that there aren't more unfortunate stories such as that one. It's hard to believe that anyone could survive this...
However, seeing how so many people have stepped up in one way or another is amazing. In Tuscaloosa their were dozens of indivuduals, students, and small groups walking or driving around handing out bottled water and sack lunches or simply asking if you needed help to those in the clean up effort.
There were hundreds at St. Mattheis Episcopal Church, the volunteer headquarters in Tuscaloosa, who just showed up asking what they could do. One young man, a colleger student from Ole Miss, drove down by himself and signed up to help for the day. In fact, by mid day they had too many people volunteering, if you can believe that. On Saturday morning, here in Birmingham, the traffic was insane due to all the people on there way to volunteer. And the churches response has been unbelievable, immediate and continuous from the very beginning. Amid all the destruction and ruin, there is still is so much good!
Here are two great links on ways to volunteer for tornado disaster relief, Hands on Birmingham and Christian Service Mission. I have heard numerous people have great expereinces through them both.
"Praise be to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord of compassion and the God of all comfort,
who comforts us in all of our troubles,
so that we can comfort those in any trouble
with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives,
so also through Christ our comfort overflows"
2 Corinthians 1:3-5
(15th Street sign, found 5 blocks over)
We ended up walking right into my friends cousin who was helping his friend, a UA student rumage through what was left of her house and belongings. We joined the effort.
Her neighbors who survived were doing the same thing and the neighbors stories who did not survive were told. This is the house of a neighbor right across the street from where we were helping. She ws hunkered down in her bathroom tub with her dog and 2 cats and was able to walk out after it passed...amazing!
This is the house of the neighbor right next door, he and his wife hunkered down in a closet and were completely fine.
Sadly, not all stories have good endings. This is a lot where a house once stood.
It was lifted completely off its foundation and thrown across the street...
Sadly, four students were in the house, three perished (two UA students and a freind that was visiting) and one walked away with minor injuries. Its really quite amazing that there aren't more unfortunate stories such as that one. It's hard to believe that anyone could survive this...
However, seeing how so many people have stepped up in one way or another is amazing. In Tuscaloosa their were dozens of indivuduals, students, and small groups walking or driving around handing out bottled water and sack lunches or simply asking if you needed help to those in the clean up effort.
There were hundreds at St. Mattheis Episcopal Church, the volunteer headquarters in Tuscaloosa, who just showed up asking what they could do. One young man, a colleger student from Ole Miss, drove down by himself and signed up to help for the day. In fact, by mid day they had too many people volunteering, if you can believe that. On Saturday morning, here in Birmingham, the traffic was insane due to all the people on there way to volunteer. And the churches response has been unbelievable, immediate and continuous from the very beginning. Amid all the destruction and ruin, there is still is so much good!
(A rainbow over Tuscaloos after the storm)
Here are two great links on ways to volunteer for tornado disaster relief, Hands on Birmingham and Christian Service Mission. I have heard numerous people have great expereinces through them both.
"Praise be to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord of compassion and the God of all comfort,
who comforts us in all of our troubles,
so that we can comfort those in any trouble
with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives,
so also through Christ our comfort overflows"
2 Corinthians 1:3-5
