As I sit here two hours after getting off of the plane at Salt Lake International Airport, I am filled with different emotions. Mostly I feel gratitude. I feel gratitude to the people of Joplin, Missouri for teaching me that people are full of love and hope. I learned that people are stronger than we often give credit for.

The people of Joplin were hit with an EF5 rating tornado on Sunday May 22^nd around 6 pm. An F5 is the strongest tornado ranking on the scale. The tornado devastated at least 25% of Joplin, leaving 7,000 completely homeless. Many are left without jobs and without cars. The tornado consumed an area of 6 miles long and reaching three fourths of a mile wide in some areas. It has claimed the lives of 142 people, with the number rising daily as rescue teams uncover more victims. More than 700 people were seriously injured and 40 are still unaccounted for. This tornado was reported as the 8^th most deadly tornado recorded in US history and it will be written in Joplin’s history forever.

I heard stories of loss, stories of heroism, stories of miracles, and stories of a better future. My group helped a man named Chris start to rebuild his home 6 days after the earthquake. All that was left of his home was a floor and a fireplace. Never did he say why me? He only spoke of optimism for the future. He knew what he had to get done and didn’t waste a minute getting started. Instead he spoke about his gratitude for the outpouring of help offered by various volunteer groups. They were showing up at what was left of his home to help him rebuild. His family was ok and that was enough for him to be ok.

My group also helped a man named Gene. He lives a couple blocks from the St. Johns hospital that was destroyed from the earthquake. In fact a hospital van was picked up and placed across the street from his home. Gene’s story is one that I will never forget. He was at home with his two daughters and mother. The sirens went off and moments later they were caught in the very center of where the two tornadoes combined. Gene said they didn’t have time to run to the shelter room so they took cover in the hallway. Gene watched as the violent force of mother nature started taking his mother up into the vortex. He grabbed her leg and held on with all his might. His family made it through the storm but his home, car, and all of his possessions did not. Gene was life flighted to a near by hospital in Carthage and suffered from a sprained ankle. His mother had a few cuts and bad bruising where her leg was grabbed. Every bit of evidence and the remains of the destruction would clearly give the impression that these people should not have made it, but they did with only minor injuries. Gene’s neighbors, however; were not as fortunate. A woman that lived to the right of him was taken along with 5 other neighbors on his block. The weather reporters claimed his home to be the area where the tornado did the most damage and was the worst. We helped Gene sort through the rubble for any possessions that might still be of use. Any item retrieved that was deemed usable was a blessing to him.

As I spent time with some of the members of the Joplin community I soon realized that these were extraordinary people. I heard words of hope more than words of despair. I saw people helping one another rebuild instead of giving up. I felt uplifted with feelings of inspiration instead of hopelessness. It was in Joplin that I learned the strength compassion brings to those in need. The clichque, “it is the little things that count the most,” most definitely holds true.

I am truly grateful for the opportunity I had to serve the people of Joplin alongside 4 amazing individuals that donated their time and money to help with disaster relief efforts. I think I can speak for all of us by saying that we did not come home the same people, as we were when we left. I can find the humor in the stressful situations that life throws at me like so many displayed in Joplin. There were only the foundations of homes left with “Yard sale, everything must go,’ spray painted on it. Everyone was optimistic for the bigger and better Joplin to come. Before Joplin, I sometimes found myself complaining about minute things. After Joplin, priorities came into my life and that is no longer the case.

I encourage everyone to remember Joplin and the people still suffering there. This will be a long road for them. Unfortunately turn over in the news cycle is quick and just as soon as the news forgets about it, so do we. Please keep Joplin in your prayers and if you have time to help in other ways I promise it will be a worthwhile experience. I am immensely touched by my fellow team members for agreeing to go on this adventure with me. I am touched by the kindness I saw displayed everywhere in Joplin. I am touched to see the human heart at its finest, in a time when it was so desperately needed. It is through serving others that we gain a type of inspirational growth, we can acquire in no other way.