The youth group from St. Joseph Parish in Dexter learned what to do after an EF3 tornado, which is the third strongest category with estimated winds of 136 to 165 m.p.h., hit there last year and 210 homes were damaged. So this year, 57 teenagers and 11 adults went to Oklahoma to assist in the cleanup after a deadly tornado destroyed the area.
Don Dalgleish, youth director says, “The students knew what to do. They organized themselves, dismantling homes by separating the debris in piles of metal, wood and glass. And the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) took care of picking up the debris.”
The National Relief Network sponsored the group of students, 13 and older, and parishioners from St. Mary Magdalene, Brighton and St. John, Howell, to assist in the clean-up.
According to Don, the students brought their own air mattresses and slept in the gym at St. James Church, Oklahoma City. After the first day, because the temperature was more than 100 degrees, they started at 5 a.m. The students worked eight hours and then each group took turns preparing meals. They were joined by another group from Chicago. More than 160 students did what they could to help the Oklahoma people prepare to rebuild their homes.
By Jan Hoffbauer
News