One year after deadly tornados swept through the Tennessee Valley, The Salvation Army is on the front lines serving the unmet needs of storm survivors. Friday begins a weekend-long remembrance, as The Salvation Army partners with events in Dade and Catoosa Counties in Georgia, and Hamilton and Bradley counties in Tennessee.
The Salvation Army began serving survivors immediately after the first tornados swept through and continues to serve today. The Salvation Army fed nearly 20,000 meals to families affected by the storm as well as emergency workers in the first days of clean up and provided over 50,000 beverages from seven different mobile kitchen vehicles. Still meeting the needs of neighbors, The Salvation Army has served 475 households so far.
“No one household is the same in their needs,” said Sandy Leveall, director of Social Services of The Salvation Army. “One family may need furniture or appliances while another needs a new roof that insurance did not cover. One family actually needed dental work as a result of their brick home crumbling around them and bricks flying into their faces and cracking their teeth.”
“The Salvation Army of Greater Chattanooga has never been this stretched with resources,” said Major Algerome Newsome, Area Commander. “With two major storm systems hitting within one year and with the struggling economy, we have never seen need so great and a budget so stretched.”
To donate to ongoing assistance please visit www.csarmy.org, call 800 Sal-Army, or mail in a monetary donation to 822 McCallie Ave., Chattanooga, Tn. 37403.
For more information please contact Kimberly George, director of Marketing, at 503-1801.