It hardly seems possible, but today marks nine months since the May 22 tornado. Nine months doesn’t seem like a lot, but so much can change in even that short amount of time.
Babies will be born today for whom the tornado will not be anything but history.
It is another signal that the worst thing that ever happened to Joplin is being put further and further behind us.
It’s still hard to look at the disaster zone. An enormous amount of work still lies ahead of us and it’s easy to lose sight of what has been accomplished, of how far we’ve come.
But brick by brick, day by day, we are building our way back.
On Tuesday, Mercy Village, a housing complex for low-income seniors, reopened. The 66-unit complex near the former St. John’s Regional Medical Center is the first of those operated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Joplin to reopen since the tornado hit.
Today, Rebuild Joplin holds its first welcome home party since being partnered with the Joplin Long Term Recovery Committee. They will welcome back Chelby Reynolds and her daughter Mary.
Thursday it will be something else. And then something after that.
It has taken a great effort but we have come a great way.
Take a moment today. Think about the thousands of people who have already returned home. Think about the hundreds of businesses that have rebuilt and reopened.
We have reason to be proud.
We are Joplin.
Opinion
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Discussion
Our View: Nine month mark
- Opinion
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Our View: Victims should come first
Millions of dollars in donations have poured in from around the world since the May 22, 2011, tornado. Those donations represent money from lemonade stands, charity auctions, corporate gifts and celebrity checks, just to name a few. In fact, one year later donations continue to come to Joplin.
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Beth Meeker, guest columnist: Same-sex marriage battle a quest for equal rights
I would like to take a moment to reply to guest columnist Anson Burlingame’s, “The Marriage Debate” (Globe, May 13).
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Sunday Forum: 2012 graduation speakers key on tornado, mall school and president’s visit
Editor’s note: In addition to speeches by President Barack Obama and Gov. Jay Nixon, Joplin High School’s top students addressed graduates, faculty, parents and other guests packed into the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center on the Missouri Southern State University campus. Following are the text of those speeches.
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Geoff Caldwell, guest columnist: Pack mentality takes truth as a casualty
President Obama’s Joplin graduation speech Monday showed that while there’s the political “right,” there’s also a very active “rabid” political right.
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Your View: ‘Study’ can mean anything
A few evenings ago, I watched a television program on the science of marriage.
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Our View: Support for museum
How can you tell the story of Joplin without the accounts of its mining history?
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Our View: Finding middle ground
The G-8 summit held last week in Camp David ended as expected.
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Anson Burlingame, guest columnist: Class of 2012 upholds character, hope
My oldest granddaughter was part of the class of 2012 from Joplin High School, and I attended the ceremony on Monday night.
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Scott Charton, guest columnist: 'Deadline in Disaster' film a story about storytellers
Local newspapers are at their best when they help their communities confront, understand, endure and overcome shared challenges.
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Our View: Make voting easiser
This year’s ballot will not include a proposed constitutional amendment that photo identification be required at the polls in Missouri. Good.
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