Wed, Oct 15 2008
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Published June 24, 2008 10:02 pm - As soon as the severity of the May 10 tornadoes became clear, officials with companies and schools began making telephone calls and sending e-mails to check on employees. Area operations come to aid of workers hit by tornadoes By Melissa Dunson mdunson@joplinglobe.com As soon as the severity of the May 10 tornadoes became clear, officials with companies and schools began making telephone calls and sending e-mails to check on employees. With the tornadoes tearing across 71 miles, severely damaging nearly 300 homes and causing more than $11 million in damage, managers knew it was inevitable that some employees lost everything. Ellis Jones, who works at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in Miami, lost his home furnishings. Jeremy Rogers, another NEO employee, lost his 2-week-old daughter’s nursery. With school out for the summer and few people on campus, Christen Stark, director of public relations and marketing for NEO, said she did not expect much participation in a fund-raiser for the men and their families. The goal was $1,000. NEO spent a week auctioning off the services of its staff members, from lawn care and math tutoring to baked goods and computer work. Stark said the college reached its goal on the auction’s third day. “NEO is a tight-knit community, but I did not expect this fund-raiser to be as large as it was,” she said. Stark said the college raised $2,500 in one week, and the money was given to the employees last week. She said the fund-raiser was such a success that the college has decided to make it an annual event, with the money raised going into a fund for school staff members in emergency situations. Matt Russell, senior sales manager for Communications Solutions & Technology in Joplin, heard that one of his veteran sales representatives, Brenda Richards, lost her house and car. To further complicate things, Richards’ husband had been in and out of the hospital, making her the main breadwinner. Russell said the company held a one-day barbecue and bake sale for Richards that raised $750. He said CST is donating an additional $250. “I was surprised. That really overshot my expectations,” Russell said. “It was good to see them all come together.” The May 10 tornadoes weren’t the first natural disaster for employees of Freeman Health System. In 2003, they started having money taken out of their paychecks and put in the Employee Natural Disaster Relief Coalition Fund in response to tornadoes that hit the area. Those donations have continued. Heather Goff, Freeman media coordinator, said 14 employees were affected by the May 10 tornadoes, and at least 10 lost everything. The employee fund contributed $250 to each affected worker. In addition, those employees received a matching $250 check from the Volunteer Hospital Association. Goff said Heather Richardson, a rescue nurse technician and a fund recipient, sent a message to Freeman recently expressing her family’s gratitude. In the note, Richardson said her family found another house in Miami, Okla., and her husband got a car. 
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