Ten for Joplin
There are very few things in life that are worth waking up at 3 a.m. for. I mean VERY few. It’s just a weird time. Sure, there have been nights (mornings) that I didn’t go to bed until then, but purposely going to bed with the intention of waking up in the middle of the night is just a little ridiculous. So when I found myself on the way to board a bus for Joplin well before the sun was up, I was thinking, “Who’s brilliant idea was it to sign up for this?” Mine. It was my idea. Well, I blame Lyndsei also, but I knew what I was getting myself into. We boarded the bus with about 60 other OSU students and began the sleepy three hour bus ride from Stillwater to Joplin, MO.
As we pulled into Joplin, the bus driver flipped the lights on and I began to wake up from my half sleep. I couldn’t believe what I saw. On both sides of the street were piles of rubble, trees without branches and hundreds of homes damaged beyond repair. Even as bad as I knew that the tornado had been, it was eerie and all too real to see it up close. Where were these people staying now that they don’t have a home? How could they possibly start their lives over? There were so many thoughts running through my head, but I was so glad that I had woken up early to make this trip.
We drove through Joplin and arrived at the high school, which isn’t being used because of the extensive damage. We were there to help with Habitat for Humanity‘s Ten for Joplin build. Ten houses for ten families in less than a month. We signed in, put on our t-shirts and were shuttled to the work site. I was at build number eight. A four bedroom, two bathroom house that would go to a young family with two school aged kids and a baby. The husband actually worked with us all day and it was really cool to get an up-close look at who we were helping. The mom and kids came later and hung out and I felt lucky that we got the chance to see who they were.
Our work started at 8 a.m. and we finished at about 5 p.m. It was a really long day and I was exhausted by the time we boarded the bus again, but it was so worth it.Through the course of the day, I helped with a bunch of stuff and even got to use an electric drill (not the first time but it was fun) and a nail gun. I now have a new love for power tools, (I can understand why men like them so much! It makes you feel like a beast!) and if anyone wants to know what to get me for Christmas, please consider a nail gun. It was amazing. I think we were fortunate to have a few really patient leaders on our team that worked with us and made us feel like we could do it.
As we walked back to the shuttle, there was of course more damage to survey. Like the wooden cross with a light blue, deflated balloon next to it marking the place that a child had passed away. It was in the empty lot right next to us all day, and I didn’t notice it until my last walk back. I got the feeling that you could walk around for hours looking at it all and there would still be more to see. I had a hard time wrapping my head around how the entire community could just keep moving, keep rebuilding and start over, but that’s exactly what they were doing. Several businesses had rebuilt, dozens of homes were replaced and even the trees, sticking straight up in the air with branches less than a foot long, were growing leaves. It was a sign that someday, after a lot of heart ache and hard work, the Joplin tornado would be a bad memory. It seems to be a strong, but hurting community that is working through the pain, so to speak.
I was proud to have gotten the chance to help and grateful for what I had. I know that ten houses isn’t a huge number when you think of the 7,500 homes that were destroyed, but it isn’t just about the homes. It’s about the people that will reside in them and the hope that we can give them. With many living in hotels and shelters and who knows where else, it’s a step in the right direction.
To help with Ten for Joplin, go to their website here. I think you’ll be glad you did.
Sporting the hard hat and safety galsses
The post-grad life 