Tornado Aid for Tennessee – Action in a Free Society
Many of you know that terrible tornadoes hit our state over the weekend, completely leveling whole towns in its wake in Northwest Tennessee. We talk so much here about building the live you CHOOSE on your terms, the power of a community of doers, building networks – underground and otherwise.
And this is our test. What can we do to help those impacted by this disaster, without using the force of government? What are you willing to do?
Perhaps your heart is elsewhere – say, Kentucky where they were hit much harder. Good – you found your heart! Go with it.
One of the justifications for taxes is that the care of people is outsourced through tax money. Not in this case. YES government officials are doing things to help. NO they are not equipped to handle a crisis of this scale. Who would be?
We like to bander about the saying, “Many hands make light work.” Yet here we are — looking for helpers for a crisis and so many cannot answer the call.
But I know we can. I know there are many of us out there.
Where is my heart? It is with all the communities impacted by this disaster. But one area, that in Northwestern Tennessee comes to the forefront.
Why?
A long-time listener, supporter of the show, and friend was lucky that these terrible twisters did not hit his home. And they didn’t. Instead, they completely leveled four towns nearby. By leveled, I mean flat. All the homes are gone. All the gas stations. All the buildings. There is nothing left. People who did not die that night are in neighboring towns, filling churches and schools. They sleep on sofas in other people’s homes. They crash on the floors as best they can. There is nowhere for them to go in order to rebuild.
This long-time listener, Kurt Dugger, has found places to organize aid. He is assessing needs beyond the centers where aid is abundant. He could use our help.
The needs change by the day. Sometimes water, sometimes a blanket, sometimes soap. The best way to provide what people need now is to have contact with them. Contact from the local area, not following some national “crisis aid outline.”
At this time, here are the needs:
- Donated items: hygiene, blankets, NOT CLOTHING, comfort for the kids who lost Christmas that is portable like coloring books and crayons and stuffed animals, canned and boxed food, tarps, water. Contact CACTeam.com or me to find out where to bring these things. If you are on a week or two delay, contact us to see what the current needs are.
If you are coming to my Christmas Reception on Saturday, please feel free to bring donated items to the Holler.
- People to help: We need folks willing to help distribute supplies, do the shopping as we get more monetary donations, and haul big thinks like pallets of tarps (yes we just found TWO of those). We may need some dispatchers too! Right now, we are working with CACTeam.com to coordinate that piece, although Kurt Dugger is also a great resource for information on where and when things are needed.
- Monetary donations: Please either find a local church or bank raising funds to help victims, or donate to the CACTeam.com so that your funds go to people who need help, and not administrative fees and private jets. Disaster Aid can be big business for some organizations.
Long term, these families who survived will rebuild. They will need sofas and beds. They will need dishes. They will build new memories and take new photos. We do not know what the long term rebuilding process looks like just yet. We do know one thing: Our community loves to empower people and right now, these folks could use some healthy helping hands.
Join John Willis, Kurt Dugger, and I Wednesday at 12:30pm Central as we discuss Aid in a Free Society and How to help the folks who have lost everything over the weekend.
Join us here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3oq3anc_Cg
