Locals React To Tornadoes In Joplin
Joe Spencer lives in Cathedral City with his wife. He was visiting family in Joplin, Missouri when the tornado struck. “My truck was shaking, semi was shaking, it was a little unnerving for a while,” said Spencer.
He escaped Joplin without any injury and was also able to make contact with all of his family and friends in the area. However, he is still in awe of the huge amount of damage that was done. “It’s just surreal when you start to come upon everything that has been damaged,” said Spencer. “You just can’t believe the power of the tornado and the destruction that it caused.”
Matt Spencer, no relation to Joe, lives in La Quinta now, but he and his family spent nearly their entire lives in the tight-knit community in southwestern Missouri. After hearing about the tornadoes, he immediately got in touch with his friends still in Joplin and they described a horrific scene. “Described it as a warzone,” said Matt. “Said he could not recognize where he was at–a community that I grew up in.”
While Matt and Joe were fortunate not to lose any loved ones in the disaster, many have not been so lucky. Many people remain missing but social networking sites like Facebook have helped the cause. “There are several websites, several Facebook pages that are dedicated solely to helping family members find other family members,” said Joe. “You know it’s been a great blessing and comfort for those people to know that everyone’s okay.”
The two men do not recognize the town they grew up in, however they do remember the people. The strong community of Joplin is one that they believe will persevere and rebuild. “I think everybody’s going to see that Joplin is full of people with big hearts who will help contribute and do whatever it takes to rebuild and lift up their neighbors to make sure their lives are good,” said Joe.
“Joplin will get through this, they’re going to have to take it a day at a time and deal with all that comes with such a tragedy,” added Matt. “And with our help and prayer and support, we know they will.”
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