JOPLIN – The air in Joplin stings.
The wind sweeps down a clear-cut channel through the middle of town. No buildings, no tree limbs and almost no grass – it’s been covered by collapsed houses – block the breeze. The wind stirs up dirt, tiny particles of insulation, debris and who knows what else and blasts them into your skin.
I had tried to be prepared for this mission. I’d watched the news footage and cried to see the devastation our Missouri neighbors were experiencing. At Green Valley Baptist in St. Joseph, we had been planning a mission trip to Ohio, but after the May 22 tornado, we knew our calling had switched to serve closer to home.
Pulling into Joplin on a sunny June morning, we encountered a busy city. The hub of activity was Forest Park Baptist Church at the first major intersection in town. The parking lot was crowded with semi trailers, church vans, shower trailers, cases of bottled water and tents serving lunch to volunteers and storm victims alike. After training from Samaritan’s Purse, we headed out on assignment. We turned off the main highway and headed south into the heart of town. The buildings at first looked fine, then a few had boarded windows and damaged signs.
Then the vehicle topped a hill and before our eyes spread the devastation. The pictures had not nearly captured the scope of the loss. At many points in Joplin, as far as you can see in any direction, there is not one building standing. Most striking are the trees, stripped bare of leaves, bark and even limbs. The neighborhoods are strangely quiet, the sounds of heavy equipment and chain saws occasionally breaking through a wasteland in the center of the city.
The task felt overwhelming. With more than 6,000 buildings destroyed, my task of picking up tree limbs, mangled siding and broken dishes seemed insignificant. But in the times we met homeowners, it was clear what the healing touch of God’s people could do in this broken place.
Several days during the week I served as a “personal shopper” in Mission Joplin, the distribution center created by Forest Park to provide food and household goods to storm victims.
Leading moms and dads, senior citizens, teenagers and toddlers through the aisles gave me the chance to encourage and pray for them. A month after the tornado, most were still in shock. Many had lost their home, their car and their job within minutes. Figuring out where to start in rebuilding was overwhelming.
The simplest things made such a difference. One woman cried to receive a homemade afghan, much like one from her grandmother that had been lost. I gave my own hand mirror to a man who needed one for his wife; they are currently living in a tent.
As these survivors shared their stories, we heard stories of God’s protection in varied and
miraculous ways. I met Rosa Zapien, who gave birth to her son Joeziah at St. John’s Hospital a few hours before the tornado hit. She is thankful for a nurse who shielded them from the storm, then helped her walk down eight flights of stairs to get out of the building. The nurse even gave Rosa her shoes so she could walk outside. Their home was destroyed and now the family is staying with different sets of relatives. They came to Mission Joplin to get diapers and baby supplies.
“We really have been blessed,” said Rosa’s mother, Amanda.
In the storm’s aftermath, few question God’s power, but there is a deep need in Joplin for people to hear of His unfailing love and mercies that are new every morning. A short mission trip not too far from home was significant for me and for our church. I hope many more are able to serve to fill the need.
In the air in Joplin, it is clear that God is stirring in the city.
BY SUSIE MIRES/ contributing writer