Groups gather supplies to assist tornado victims
JACKSON, Tenn. — Many have been affected by the tornadoes, and several groups have come together to help.
Three local organizations are teaming up to aid as many people as they can, and they need your help as well.
“Tomorrow we’ll actually deploy our local unit and two volunteers to the affected areas to provide food, drinks, as well as pastoral care to survivors and responders to the tornadoes,” said Lt. Mark Cancia, with the Salvation Army.
The local Salvation Army is getting their mobile unit ready to head to Mayfield, Kentucky to help as many people as they can.
“While some people have lost everything when the Salvation Army rolls in, what we provide, yes, it’s food and drinks,” Cancia said. “But we ultimately provide hope to let people know that somebody cares, and that through the generosity of others we’re able to make sure that they have a hot meal or a bed to sleep in.”
The Home Depot is also joining the cause with clean up kits.
“Right now we’re assembling 700 kits to be taken out to Dresden and Samburg. Our company is based off giving back, taking care of the community that so graciously takes care of us everyday. So when we do have opportunities that come through like this, this gives us an opportunity to pay it forward to those shoppers and those customers who have taken care of us for many years,” said Robbie Salemi, the District Manager for the Home Depot West Tennessee Greater Area.
The American Red Cross also has their team out and about.
“The first step that we usually take is boots on the ground to do disaster assessment of the impacted homes and just making sure what is the extent of the damage, how many families are we going to be enabled to help give financial assistance to,” said David Hicks, Executive Director of the Midwest Tennessee Chapter of the American Red Cross.
Hicks says in order to get help, they’re a simple call away.
“When in doubt, you can call 1-800-RED-CROSS, explain the area where you have been impacted, and then they will have also gathered the local contact information so that you can have access to the services that we have already begun to put in place,” Hicks said.
If you would like to help any of these organizations with their cause, click the links below.
