Four men from the Sedona area are answering a call for construction workers in Joplin, Mo.
“The cleanup phase is done after the [May 22] tornado. Now they need to rebuild. That’s where we come in with our expertise, but we’ll only be there for one week,” Ken Maaske said.
Randy Ponto, Steve Koski and Nate Dixon are going with Maaske. All four men are construction contractors with years of experience. They left Tuesday, July 5, and flew into Springfield, Mo. a few miles east of Joplin. They will rent a truck and the equipment they need and drive into College Heights Christian Church in Joplin.
“It’s the church we’re mainly working through,” Maaske said. “I’m doing this through my church, Verde Valley Christian.”
The group started with a call from a lifelong friend of Maaske’s who lives in Joplin, Fred Wooldridge, asking if he would like to help.
“I grew up in Nebraska where we had tornados, so I understand tornado damage. I know what they’re going through, but not nearly on this scale,” Maaske said. “When I got to talking about this the other guys heard and wanted to come.”
On May 22 around 5:41 p.m. a massive tornado hit the city of Joplin, with a population of approximately 49,000, and left a path of destruction 3/4-mile wide and nearly 7 miles long. The EF-5 tornado left behind 156 dead, and 8,000 homes and 500 businesses destroyed. The number of homes in Sedona is 6,367, according to Sedona Senior Planner Mike Raber.
“This was the largest tornado ever recorded. The winds were more than 200 mph,” Maaske said. “All of the destruction is one thing. That can be fixed, but somewhere there they had 156 funerals.”
Tornados are rated on an Enhanced Fujita Scale from 0 to 5, according to wind velocity. An EF-0 has winds between 65 mph and 85 mph. An EF-5 has winds in excess of 200 mph.
Ponto said when he heard about the trip, he just had to be a part of it.
“I just felt a burning desire to do this. I think it will be life-changing for me as well as the people we help,” Ponto said. “It’ll be our way of giving back; we’ve been very blessed.”
There are a lot of disasters around the state and country that could use help, and Ponto said it is difficult to choose among them. However, this one struck when he heard some of the stories.
They already have one project lined up. In the church where they are staying is a woman who lost her home and her husband in the tornado, and two days later lost her daughter.
“We’re going to help her out and whoever else we can get to in the time we have,” Maaske said.
Accommodations and meals will be provided, but the workers paid their own travel expenses.
While in Joplin, the men will coordinate through the College Heights Christian Church with local disaster groups for the materials. The men named their trip “Struck Down but Not Destroyed.”
“It’s from the Bible in Corinthians, chapter four, verse nine. I felt God was calling me to do this. I don’t know why Joplin, but I’m going,” Maaske said.
While the projects are fairly well-coordinated around Joplin, Maaske said the toughest part will be locating sites.
“A woman there who is helping said there are no markers left to tell people how to get around. The houses, the street signs and landmarks are all gone,” Maaske said. “We’ll be using GPS to get around.”
Opportunities for financial donations or sponsorship are also available, he said. Anyone who is moved to donate can contact Verde Valley Christian Church, 3605 Zalesky Road, Cottonwood, 86326 or call 634-8166. Be sure to mention “Joplin Trip.”
