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Up Close and Personal View of the Destruction in Joplin

The Villa Duchesne family makes donations, tours tornado-ravaged Joplin, MO.

A million words have been written and thousands of pictures taken, but you cannot comprehend the full scope of the disaster caused by the EF 4 tornado in Joplin, MO unless you see it up close and personal. Thousands of lives have been disrupted. Some 151 residents of the community are dead. At the last second, graduation ceremonies at Joplin High School were moved to Missouri Southern State University to accommodate all the family and friends forced to move indoors because of pending storms. If families, relatives and students had their graduation at the high school, the death toll would likely have been in the thousands. The theatre at the school and the rest of the grounds are in almost total ruination. Everything in a 6-mile area, from …

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Still Many Ways to Help With Relief

United Way, Red Cross, Salvation Army, Catholic Charities All Standing By to Aid Storm Victims.

 Friday evening’s storms have impacted thousands of people in the greater St. Louis region. Since the storms hit, the United Way team and our disaster response partner agencies have been responding to people in need. Following are a few of the ways our community is working together to assist with storm recovery efforts: Thank you for helping people through United Way.

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Good Friday Storm Report

St. Louis' Major Companies Offering Relief

Donations are pouring in to help service agencies and families victimized by the Good Friday storm.

St. Louisans have big hearts and always step up when there is tragedy in the community. The St. Charles area, the North County area and the East Side in Bethalto, Granite City, Triad and Highland communities suffered storm damage in the millions. Thousands of residents are displaced by the storm that ravaged the area Friday night. Ameren is still struggling to turn on the power on both sides of the river. Continuous rains is forcing many major rivers and streams out of their banks. On Saturday, the St. Louis Cardinals pledged $30,000 to the American Red Cross. Financial advisor Wells Fargo contributed $100,000 to the United Way of Greater St. Louis, and Peabody Energy delivered a check for $275,000 for American Red Cross Relief efforts. …

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