Oklahoma Tornado Relief Fund

Its been over a year since the Moore, Oklahoma Tornado rocked the lives of hundreds and took the lives of 25. The strong people of Moore have united together to fight adversity and challenges from the aftermath of this disaster and have been able to do so with your help! Over the past year, some of our partner organizations have worked tirelessly to provide relief efforts and a helping hand in this time of need. Here are a few projects your donations have been able to fund:

Architecture for Humanity’s project Rebuild Moore - Oklahoma Tornado Reconstruction has worked for the past year to rebuild resources in Moore, including community centers, youth centers, public sports facilities, and centers for the elderly. Recently, Architecture for Humanity worked with a program developed by the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management (OEM) in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The program consisted of several sessions for training architects, engineers, and other professionals in order to better prepare schools in the area for future disasters. One participant, Tommy Stewart, spoke positively of the program and said “rather than what happened, we were taught to think about what could happen”. This forward thinking will allow more Oklahoma schools to find and/or create refuge areas.

Another hard-working organization over the past year has been Do Your Part, Inc. They have worked to provide fencing, an uninsured item, and personal needs to all the people and animals affected by the tornado. In their latest report, Do Your Part introduced the Hillian family’s goat farm, which lost all of its fencing and support a year ago. As a result of all of your generous donations, the farm is up and running again. The goats are secured because of new fencing, and the family can begin to live a normal life. Do Your Part wanted donors to know the Hillian family personally thanks each and every one of you! Do Your Part continues to replace and repair lost items of survivors, and residents are beginning to move into new homes with these items.

Lastly, Save the Children was one of the first responders to the disaster, jumping in to help just twenty hours after the tornado struck! With your help, Save the Children was able to fund Child-Friendly Spaces, providing affected children with safe places to play in again. Through this project, Save the Children supported 26 child-care programs and partnered with four YMCA camps. One example of this work included sending five-year-old Colton and ten-year-old Codey to a YMCA summer camp. With your help, Save the Children reached over 5,200 individuals and 2,073 children!

Even a year later, there is still more work to be done to undo the damages of the Moore, Oklahoma Tornado. The community, however, has come so far with the help of your generosity and care. Hope is being restored in Moore, and we have you to thank. Keep up the great work!

In Moore, Oklahoma, the most destructive tornado of 2013 changed the lives of hundreds in a matter of minutes. 1.1 miles across at its widest, the disaster ripped through the community causing billions of dollars in damages and taking 25 lives. It’s times like this that bring a distraught community together to build a better future. This is exactly your donations are helping with, ensuring a bright future for the families whose homes were destroyed or whose loved ones were lost. GlobalGiving has teamed up with some amazing on-the-ground organizations who are serving those who lost everything. The two organizations are still building and working almost a year later. This dedication inspires us here at GlobalGiving! Here are just two examples of this inspirational dedication.

The first organization committed to helping those affected by the tornado is Do Your Part Inc. With the funds that they receive from GlobalGiving, Do Your Part has been able to buy and build fencing for peoples properties. These fences are vital to reestablishing animal pens which families use for their livelihood. Also, a small family of three was given a fresh start thanks to their new apartment which you helped fund! Thanks, for this family’s new beginnings and for countless others too!

The second organization which this GlobalGiving fund benefits is “Rebuild Moore -- Oklahoma Tornado Reconstruction” implemented by Architecture for Humanity. This project is hands on and absolutely committed to long term reconstruction. Right now their project is focused on creating lasting partnerships and building schools that will be safe in case of future such disasters. Two schools laid in the path of the Moore tornado and both were leveled to the ground.  Architecture for Humanity strives to build more tornado resistant buildings and they are teaming with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the state of Oklahoma’s Office for Emergency management (OKOEM) to help them.

The partnership will work on long term reconstruction efforts and will empower members of the community to actively engage in their own recovery programs. One of these programs is the Safe Schools 101 initiative which trains local architects and engineers in assessing the the ability of schools to withstand tornados. They are trained to recognize if the buildings are not up to FEMA regulatory standards and how to remedy this. This program has been implemented all over the state of Oklahoma and it can be available nationwide if you sign up here!

Clearly there is still ongoing recovery efforts, even so many months after the disaster. While this disaster was tragic and devastated hundreds of lives, the support that you have provided has given people hope and the brightest future possible! GlobalGiving thanks you on behalf of all those affected by the Oklahoma Tornados!

Dear GlobalGivers,

Nearly four months after the 2013 Moore tornado, which killed 23 people and injured 377 others, the people of Oklahoma continue to recover in the face of adversity. Your contribution took a huge weight off their shoulders, allowing many to begin a speedy recovery. Several GlobalGiving partner organizations were able to respond to the needs of these people thanks to your donation, here’s what some of them were able to accomplish:

• K.I.D.S Oklahoma Relief Efforts (Kids in Distressed Situations) allied with Fashion Delivers and distributed new apparel and home items to more than 1,000 school children and family members affected by the tornadoes in Moore, Oklahoma. Burlington Coat Factory also provided 10 pallets of merchandise, while BOBS from Skechers and Shoe Carnival donated 3,000 pair of children’s shoes. The companies’ employees also volunteered to set up and staff the event. The remaining merchandise from the event was given to local charities serving tornado victims in Pottawatomie County and the Oklahoma City area. There were also 200 fifty-dollar Burlington gift cards delivered to these charities. Together, K.I.D.S and Fashion Delivers distributed approximately $7 million worth of merchandise to partners and organizations helping Oklahoma tornado survivors. 

• Do Your Part has assisted in rescuing horses and reconnecting them with their families. They have worked with veterinarian hospitals and clinics to get medical supplies for these animals. Do Your Part has also purchased fencing materials, flooring, insulation, and materials for a handicapped ramp, for volunteers to install. The organization has also established a Facebook page where people can get and offer help. For the moment, they are working on a water line project, which was destroyed during the storm. Gift Cards for families to get food, gas, clothes, and school supplies were also distributed.  

• Architecture for Humanity has been assisting communities, meeting local authorities, and assessing the emerging needs and long term priorities of the towns affected by the tornado. The work in these afflicted areas mainly consists of debris removal, mostly from residential neighborhoods. City crews and other contractors continued removing debris through July and August. The organization has also a strong presence on the ground, where veteran volunteer Tommy Stewart has been meeting with other organizations and individuals involved with the recovery efforts and assisting with post disaster damage assessments for homeowners. Mr. Stewart has also been liaising with the Long Term Recovery Committee for the May 18-June 2, a committee that recently acknowledged that its members are still involved with immediate family and individual needs, and that the long term reconstruction talks are far from now.  

• GlobalGiving’s support to the American Humane Association allowed its Red Star Animal Emergency Services team to provide humane intervention to the impacted area in order to deliver values of compassion, care, and hope. The Red Star team stayed in Oklahoma for 30 days - the longest deployment since Hurricane Katrina. They were able to rescue and shelter more than 200 animals, reunite nearly 100 of them with their families, and place some with rescues and get many into good, loving homes during an Adopt-a-Thon. Last, the team assisted the City of Moore on writing an animal disaster plan for future emergencies. Training courses about basic knowledge of disaster response were given in the area in order to build a better responder base in the community. 

Thank you for your contribution to the Oklahoma Tornado Relief Fund. Your kindness allowed for these organizations to quickly mobilize and helped those who needed it the most, offer training courses in disaster relief, and helped animals reconnect with their families.

We will keep you updated in the following months; however, feel free to let us know if you have any questions or thoughts in the comment section below.

Thank you.

It has been with great sadness that all of us here at GlobalGiving have been following the news of the 1.3-mile wide tornado that ripped through Moore, Oklahoma on May 20, which damaged hundreds of homes, businesses, schools and hospitals and killed dozens with wind speeds up to 210 mph.  Within several hours, GlobalGiving partner organizations were already on the ground working to help communities affected.  Your donations to the Oklahoma Tornado Relief Fund are supporting these organizations in this important work:

• Save the Children is creating Child Friendly Spaces in shelters, creating safe play areas where kids can be kids again. They also will be deploying infant and toddler hygiene materials to support young children's well-being while they are displaced from their homes.  
• Do Your Part is supporting local organizations through information gathering and coordinating donations of clean water, food, medical supplies, hygiene products, and shelter to those that need it most.  
• Architecture for Humanity will work with local professionals and universities to rebuild community buildings, such as youth centers, public sports facilities and centers for the elderly. 
• Pitch in for Baseball is working with the Youth Baseball association in Moore, Oklahoma, which serves 1,400 kids, to provide new and gently used youth baseball uniforms and equipment to those kids and communities devastated by the tornado.  
• Kids in Distressed Situations (KIDS) is delivering brand-new clothing, undergarments, shoes, blankets, sheets and towels, baby items, and furnishings to help the hardest hit families in Moore.

GlobalGiving In-the-Field team member Jenn Eason, a proud Moore, Oklahoma native, wanted us to pass along this personal note:

“I am so thankful for the money you have donated going towards the relief of my friends and family back home... and THEY are so thankful.  I am amazed that after four days, GlobalGiving’s original goal was exceeded! It brings tears to my eyes!”

Thank you again for all of the support that you have already provided to these organizations.   We will continue to update you in the coming weeks and months on how your donations are put to work to rebuild these communities.