Raymond heard the tornado sirens, but like many people living in the Midwest who hear them often, he wasn’t overly concerned.
“Me and my mother went to Wal-Mart but as soon as we got into the building the manager locked the door and told us to go to the back,” says Raymond. “We made it back there and about that time I felt my ears start popping from the pressure. I’ve already been through the Greensburg (Kansas) tornado and a few hurricanes so I knew that means it was getting close.”
Raymond who was treated for a bruised lung and broken ribs stands to have his photo taken.
“The building started shaking and I covered my mother,” he adds, “I watched the roof get pulled off and a beam came down on me. After the wind stopped, I don’t know how I lifted it off of me.”
When Raymond and his mother stumbled out of the rubble, volunteers transported him to a hospital because he was having trouble breathing. From there he was flown to Springfield, treated for a bruised lung and broken ribs and released the next day.
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When the shuttle returning him to Joplin drove onto Missouri Southern State University’s campus, Raymond ran into his sister.
“We’re all alive. We shouldn’t be, but we are. We’ve just got to take slow steps and rebuild. That’s all we can do,” adds Raymond.
His words echo the thoughts of many in Joplin who are trying to put their lives back together. Like so many others, Raymond expressed gratitude for the emergency relief supplies and household items that Convoy of Hope is providing to help him and his family.
“It’s overwhelming,” he says. “People have good hearts.”
As of Friday, Convoy of Hope has delivered nearly 500,000 pounds of food, water and supplies to victims of the Joplin tornado.
