William Parker
Lecciones de la tormenta
William Parker recuerda vívidamente la noche del 10 de diciembre de 2021, cuando un tornado EF4 golpeó su casa y su comunidad. Sin ser plenamente consciente de la intensidad del tornado, buscó refugio en su baño. Al reflexionar sobre esa noche, William dice: “Había oído que si puedes oír un tornado, estás demasiado cerca, y yo definitivamente estaba demasiado cerca. Tardó unos diez segundos. Golpeó la parte trasera de mi casa y trató de levantarla”. Afortunadamente, su casa tenía cimientos sólidos, lo que evitó que se la llevara el viento, y William escapó sin lesiones físicas. Sin embargo, su techo sufrió graves daños y gran parte de su cocina quedó destruida. Más tarde, se enteró de que el tornado también había demolido la fábrica de velas que se encuentra al este de su casa.
On her way, the scene was surreal—emergency vehicles flooded the streets, police cars and ambulances speeding past her. As she crossed the overhead bridge, she felt a wave of disbelief; it looked as though a bomb had exploded. Finally able to contact her son, she found him hysterical; the house he’d been in was gone. When she arrived, she saw he had been injured by falling bricks. Unable to reach her mother’s house, they returned to her own home, which was in disarray, with no power. The siding was torn off, a window shattered, water had flooded inside, and fallen trees were scattered everywhere, damaging the underground water pipes. They looked at the devastation and asked themselves, “Where do we go from here?”
In the following days and weeks, the biggest challenge they faced was finding housing. They stayed with her mother for a short time before moving to a hotel for a couple of weeks. Her son’s car was totaled after a tree limb fell on it, making it hard to get to work. Securing food and water was a daily struggle as well. Just before Christmas Eve, they decided to return home. Although they had power, they were still without water, relying on friends who brought jugs to help with flushing the toilet. They lived like this for about a month until the water pipes were repaired. Supplies came from St. Jerome Church in Fancy Farm and the local school, which had been set up as disaster centers. Many organizations offered food assistance, alleviating worries about diapers, wipes, and other essentials. The tornado had left a deep scar on their community—"everything was gone, lives were lost, people were hurt.”
La Cruz Roja Americana brindó a William apoyo financiero para cubrir sus necesidades urgentes y reparar el techo de su casa dañada. A pesar de su ayuda, el proceso de recuperación siguió siendo una pesada carga financiera para William, quien tuvo que echar mano de sus ahorros para continuar reparando su casa. Durante esta temporada encontró consuelo en el apoyo de amigos que lo cuidaron y lo ayudaron a conseguir las cosas que necesitaba.
Cuando la Cruz Roja Americana ya no pudo ayudar, derivaron a William al Grupo de Recuperación a Largo Plazo Mayfield Graves (LTRG). A través del LTRG, se puso en contacto con Bo, un gestor de casos de la Conferencia de Tennessee-Kentucky Occidental de la Iglesia Metodista Unida (TWKUMC). Bo desempeñó un papel fundamental en la recuperación de William, guiándolo a través de los recursos y servicios disponibles para él. “Me puso en contacto con los servicios que necesitaba. Cuando llegué al punto en el que perdí la fe, Bo siguió insistiendo hasta que alcanzamos mis objetivos”, dice William, y agradece tanto a la Cruz Roja Americana como a Bo por ayudarlo a atravesar las partes más difíciles de su camino.
William pudo permanecer en su casa hasta que una de las organizaciones asociadas del LTRG, el Appalachian Service Project (ASP), comenzó a construir su nueva casa. Durante ese tiempo, el LTRG de Mayfield Graves le proporcionó una casa rodante, lo que le permitió quedarse en su propiedad y evitar el desplazamiento.
The tornado and subsequent flood reshaped her perspective on life, resilience, and preparedness. Now, her home includes a safe room for potential future tornadoes. “Stay prayed up,” she advised, “you never know what can happen. Listen to the news and heed the warnings.” Her faith, along with support from Samaritan’s Purse, helped her through the difficult times. She maintained contact with five of the women she had met through the group, and they regularly checked in on one another, keeping her hope alive.
Candi’s faith, family, and friends kept her hope alive. Her advice to others facing similar challenges is, “Weeping may endure through the night, but joy will come in the morning.” She encourages everyone to keep praising and praying, confident that God would make a way. What began as a tragedy ultimately became a profound blessing.