There are certain days, dates, and times that you always remember. Perhaps you can remember where you were on November 22, 1963 when you learned that President Kennedy had been shot. We can all remember where we were on 9/11, and for those of us in Lee County, we will forever remember the tornado tragedy of March 3, 2019. As United Way staff watched this disaster unfold over the television that afternoon, we began making plans to fulfill our disaster responsibilities. Though we had all trained for our specific roles in a disaster, this was larger than we had dealt with before, and it was personal. We all had a connection or knew someone involved. We knew that all our training and planning was about to be put to the test.

United Way is responsible for setting up and running a Volunteer Reception Center under EMA’s direction when disasters occur. We also assist with helping to organize volunteer agencies at the EMA Emergency Operations Center and making 2-1-1 available for disaster resources and coordination of the needs of survivors and volunteers. Just like every other disaster resource in Lee County, our staff of three was stretched thin but, in the midst of such tragedy we saw the outpouring of so much love for our community. Sister organizations like the United Way of Central Alabama, United Way of Etowah County, United Way of East Central Alabama, and United Way of Chattahoochee Valley stepped up by making donations, sending manpower, and helping to quickly set up a structure to receive donations for the long term recovery. Churches, businesses, and nonprofits from all over the nation reached out to see how they could help.