- - Rolling Fork, Mississippi - -
SPRING 2024 - ROLLING FORK, MISSISSIPPI
At 8:00pm on March 24, 2023, ROLLING FORK was mowed over by an EF4 Tornado. With little to no notice, it cut through the middle of town, destroying half the structures, and killing over a dozen people. Hand of hope Omaha lead 3 mission teams of nearly 90 volunteers from February 24 to March 16, focused on rebuilding the community. The exceptionally wide, ¾ mile, path ran for over 59 miles. The track was from the Southwest to the Northeast, the same layout as the town. It ran right up through the middle! Over 260 of the 500 structures were completely destroyed.
Some of the richest soil in the world is here in the Delta, but that does not equate to financial freedom, 38% of the people live below the Poverty Line, compare that to 24% for the State and 15% at other states. Over 68% of the population is Renters.
At 8:00pm on March 24, 2023, ROLLING FORK was mowed over by an EF4 Tornado. With little to no notice, it cut through the middle of town, destroying half the structures, and killing over a dozen people. Hand of hope Omaha lead 3 mission teams of nearly 90 volunteers from February 24 to March 16, focused on rebuilding the community. The exceptionally wide, ¾ mile, path ran for over 59 miles. The track was from the Southwest to the Northeast, the same layout as the town. It ran right up through the middle! Over 260 of the 500 structures were completely destroyed.
Some of the richest soil in the world is here in the Delta, but that does not equate to financial freedom, 38% of the people live below the Poverty Line, compare that to 24% for the State and 15% at other states. Over 68% of the population is Renters.
Through Rolling Fork Rising we worked on six homes over the three weeks we were there. - Three were simply a concrete pad on Day One, - Two others seemed to be less than a month from completion and - One was about two months from completion. |
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Three weeks - Three Mission teams
Over the three weeks the initial group was from Omaha. Week 2 was a mix of several Omaha volunteers plus Football Players from Morningside University in Sioux City, Iowa. Week Three was a mix of young men with ties to Ord, NE plus friends from Omaha Rapid Response.
We worked on building 6 new homes over the three weeks. We were drawn to Rolling Fork by the one-of-a-kind program of Rolling Fork Rising. With 68% of the population being Renters, they addressed that gap, offering Renters who go through their program an opportunity to step out of multi-generational poverty and become Homeowners. Thank you to churches like Westside Baptist – Omaha and Bethel Baptist – Ord for their financial support. Please learn about the mission of RFR and support this unique path to recovery that will continue for several years as long as the support is there. |
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