October 27, 2011
I The Lovell Chronicle I 15
A Lovell native says 'thank you' from Joplin
Dear Friends:
When I saw the complete destruction left
by the EF5 tornado that hit my current home-
town of Joplin, Missouri, on May 22, I won-
dered, "Where do we even start and how can
this possibly ever be OK?" 160 people lost their
lives, 1,000 more injured, 7,000 homes de-
stroyed, 18,000 vehicles totaled, Joplin High
School and five other school buildings destroyed
with seven badly damaged. 450 businesses lev-
eled, including doctors, dentists and other sup-
port service offices, as well as St. John's Hospi-
tal, these businesses employing a total of almost
5,000 people. Joplin certainly will never be the
same again, but in the midst of tragedy I have
learned much.
The most evident truth I learned was there
are many more good and generous people in the
world than I ever thought possible. Near mid-
night the night of the tornado, I stood in a park-
ing lot while my husband worked to repair two
flat tires acquired driving through rubble in the
streets. I was stunned at the volume of police
cars, ambulances, heavy equipment, press vans
and fire trucks that went by in a constant
stream toward the destruction.
The sound of sirens continued for days. Most
of these vehicles were from out of town. Helicop-
ters streamed overhead, people walking by went
out of their way to see if we needed help and
to tell their story. One of my first conversations
with my mother after the tornado consisted of
her telling me of many offers of help and assis-
tance from the people of Lovell in the form of
food, quilts, clothing, household items, offers to
cover the expense of care package postage and
money.
Overnight, Joplin became a bizarre camp
of tents (and outhouses) -- tents for the wound-
ed, tents for counseling, lost and found, infor-
mation, clothing, sanitation and hygiene prod-
ucts, pretty much anything you needed could
be found in a tent. Our local radio station sus-
pended regular programming for about three
weeks and became an information center as
people tried to locate friends, neighbors and
loved ones. They kept us updated on available
services, new locations of physicians, hous-
ing opportunities, lost and found pets, cur-
few times, weather, safety updates and count-
less bits of information.
Barbeque grills sprung up in parking lots
across the whole city, feeding anyone who came
at no charge. Restaurants opened their doors
and gave away what they had. One Saturday as
we were helping clean up, we stopped at a food
tent of a church group who came from six hours
away and had prepared and donated quality hot
food. Organizations and individuals donated
food for weeks.
Church groups from all over the nation
came and set up their command centers in
parking lots. The Red Cross and other organi-
zations drove up and down the streets, distrib-
uting meals to volunteers and those who still
had homes, but no electricity. My favorite was
the man who sangcheerful songs over the loud-
COURTESY PHOTOS
Tawny Bischoff Kemp works with a pile of care packages that arrived from north Big
Horn County to help the people of Joplin, Mo. People from all over the United States
contributed to the relief effort after a tornado devastated Joplin in May.
speaker of his vehicle in between calling out for
people to come get some food. Many pickups
and vans were loaded with cold bottled water
and sports drinks and brought it to those help-
ing. Speaking to people working alongside me,
I discovered college students choosing to devote
their summer to help clear debris, families giv-
ing up vacations to serve, young people choosing
to work instead of play and even more amaz-
ing working alongside those who lost their own
homes who were cheerfully helping others expe-
riencing the same loss.
I learned that loss gives perspective, that
when you boil it down we all value our families
and loved ones exponentially more than our "pos-
sessions." I was reminded again of the fragility
of life. The children your children played with
today could be gone tomorrow. The cross word
spoken to another causes deep regret, and a city
block can mean the difference between life and
death. The teenager you didn't think much of the
day before has become a hero. The person at the
store who you have never met is willing to sacri-
fice their life to make sure you reach safety.
As people connected with my children in
various areas of the country expressed a desire
to help, boxes of relief items began to appear on
my doorstep. There were days when my entire
front door was blocked. Two rooms of my house
were filled with items from which we assembled
care packages for those who needed help. Many
of the packages on my doorstep had a return ad-
dress of Lovell, Wyoming.
Among the most appreciated items were
the quilts that were sent. They have been dis-
The May 22 tornado that devastated
Joplin, Mo., left the community a twisted
mass of destruction.
not understand -- who insisted on taking their
new blankets with them everywhere in the days
that followed, to a family who lost their son who
was on his way home from his high school grad-
uation, to a family with two little girls who lost
their home and are now our new neighbors, to
families who relocated to other states, neighbor-
ing communities and elsewhere in Missouri; to
a man who clung to the hand of his son in the
hallway of their home as the tornado lifted his
son and threatened to tear him from his grasp,
tributed to people whq lost their homes, to those to a woman who spent three weeks following the
who sheltered aad::.e.:stl_leLtenng0, ; ::ado re.covering in a hospital, totwo children
to children who lost their playmates and do whose mother lost her life as she escorted some-
one else to safety.
There have been both smiles and tears as
quilts and other thoughtful items sent from
Lovell and other locations were distributed. Do-
nations of money from Lovell helped a Joplin
woman battling cancer make a needed trip to the
Mayo Clinic. She received the needed help and
her future looks good. A group of young women
in Hawaii learned to make jam from guava and
sent 48 jars to a group of Joplin young women
who enjoyed it on biscuits at their church sum-
mer camp. A high school student body president
from Gunnison, Utah, helped in the clean-up ef-
forts for a week and, upon returning home, or-
ganized donations of school supplies to help the
students of Joplin High School. From hearing
the accounts of others, I know this same gener-
ous giving was repeated countless times across
the city.
Our community is doing well. Little by lit-
tle, stores and restaurants are being rebuilt,
with chain stores moving quicker than most of
the privately held business. Doctor offices have
been relocated. I had my first experience go-
ing to my dentist in a trailer, who had not only
lost his business but his home. Schools are
back in session, the buildings spared taking in
the children whose school was destroyed. The
high school is split now, half attending at the
mall in a revamped ShopKo building, the oth-
er half in with a middle school. The hospital
has dismantled most of their MASH units into
mobile but more permanent structures. Plans
to rebuild are in the works. Many churches
were destroyed, including ours. People of other
faiths have made room for other congregations
in their buildings, putting aside differences to
extend kindness.
While most of the affected area is bare and
empty now that much of the debris is cleared, it
seems new houses are being started every
day. One high school senior in Joplin established
a non-profit organization collecting 3,000 white
dogwood trees (the Missouri state tree), that
have been distributed across the damaged areas
of the city. They will be beautiful.
My faith in humanity has been strength-
ened. You have been a part of that, and I am
thankful for you and for all who have donated. I
never expected to be involved in a major natu-
ral disaster. Today, a friend of ours said, "The
tornado was not cool, but look what it has done
for us." He is right. Since May 22, and for some
time to come, our lives will straddle the line
between turbulence and order. I believe order
will win. We are stronger and better for the ex-
perience. In the Joplin community, beauty has
indeed risen from the ashes. Russ and I will
forever be grateful for your kindness.
Sincerely,
Tawny Bischoff Kemp
Editor's note:Tawny Bischoff Kemp is the oldest
daughter of Gary and Dolores Bischoff of Lovell.
She is a 1980 graduate of Lovell High School. She
and. her husbls.s, have four children (three
gil'l'd aqatid two granddaughters. The
Kemps havin Joplin since 1993.
NWC Employee
Powell, Wyo.
I started working as a custodian at NWC in 1985. I knew
al positions on campus. I give back part of every paycheck
to the NWC Foundation because it helps give others oppor-
tunities to do more than they thought they could. That's why
Northwest matters to me.
*Val Is one of 107 NWC employees who donate each month to the
NWC Foundation throush payroll deduction.
:!ViS?!iiiiiiiiiiiiii!iiiiiiiiiiii!iiiii
i'% i::!( i i ,,:,, ,,,; ......................
ii!!iiiii!iiiiiii!iiiiii!iii!iiiiiii!!iiiii
iiiiiiii!iii!iiiiii!iiiii!!iiiiii!iii!ii!iiiiiiiiiii!iiiiiiiiiii!
i!!i!iiiiiiiiili!ii!i:!iii!iiiiii:!iii!!iii!!iiiii!i!:iiii!!?!ii!iilili
iiiiii!ii!i!!iiiii:iiii!!ii'ii!!iiiiii!iiiiiiiii!i!iiiiiiiiiiii!
how to c, ean and, th,s sk,,, to he,p support my
ily. I didn't think there were any other career options until I ii i
came to Northwest. Everyone here encourages you to dream
about your future and to take the steps to get there. That's
what l did. I enrolled in a class or two each semester. Now I ii i
have a degree and a lob in one of the highest-level secretari-
!ii!iliiqi!ii!iiii!iiiii!iiiiii!iiiii!iiiii!iiii!!ii!iiiiiii!il
iiiiiiiii!ili!i!iiiiii:i!ii!!iii!i:iiiii!iiiiiiiiiiiii!iii!iiiiiiii!i
!iiiiii!iiiili!!!!ii!!iiiii!ii!!!iii!iii!i!iiii00!!00ili00i!iii!iii!!!i!:i!i
!iiiiiiiiiili!iiiiiiii!iiiiii!i!!iii!ili!!!iiiiiii!ii!iiii!iiiiii!ii!ili
ili!i!iii!iiiiili!i!iiiiiiiii!i!iiii!iii!!iiiii:!!i,lii!iiiiii
I consider every student at Riverside as "my kid." I'm so
proud all 15 of my 2.011 seniors are now in college. Thanks
to NWC Foundation Scholarships, 12. of those 15 are at
Northwest, which makes me even happier. When "my
kids" go out Into the world, I worry about them. When
they go to Northwest, I don't worry as much because they
already know a friendly face or two before they ever get
to campus. That's why Northwest matters to me.
Guidance Counselor at
Riverside Hlgh School, Basln, Wyo.
iiiiii!i!iiiii!iiiiiiiiiiii!iiiiiiiiiii!iiii
This is one job
only we can handle.
A downed power line can energize trees, fences, even the ground around it - so
whatever you do, never approach a downed line. Stay away, keep others away and
call us at 888-221-7070 or dial 9 I I. There are thousands of volts flowing through
these lines, so please remember to be safe and keep your distance. Visit
rockymountainpower.net/safety
ROCKY MOUNTAIN
for more information. r POWER
Let's turn the answers on.
