APRIL 27, 2011
Shortly after midnight, two F-4 tornadoes ripped through Spalding County. As many citizens slept through the night, the west side of our county was severely damaged by the worst natural disaster to ever hit our area.
With homes completely demolished, power lines down, and trees blocking the roads, there was no way for victims living in the west side to receive immediate help.
That’s where Volunteer Network started.
Two volunteers living in the West Ellis Road area emerged from their homes, just minutes after the tornado to discover almost every house on their road completely demolished. Having survived the tornado with no damages to either of their homes, they left in their trucks with chainsaws and began rescuing people from under the rubble of what once was their home.
They worked through the night clearing roads and giving what medical attention they could until emergency response units were able to reach them the following morning.
APRIL 28, 2011
The next morning 200+ volunteers assembled at First Assembly of God in Griffin- one of the closest churches to the disaster zones. Volunteers were divided into 4 teams and sent to a list of 4 homes that had been given to the church.
That evening, volunteer coordinator, Emily Higgins sent out a message informing friends of a single mother she met on West McIntosh Rd.
Ms. Barreto and her daughter were renting to own a home when a tornado ripped through their community. With only $7,000 left to pay before they owned their home, and no insurance, there seemed to be little hope.
APRIL 29-MAY 1, 2011
The Barreto’s immediately captured the hearts of volunteer coordinators, Emily Higgins, Danielle Valimont and Leah Diaz. They began assembling their friends to help clear the Barreto’s land and within 3 days their lot was completed.
Seeing how networking on Facebook had brought a lot of help, Danielle started a Facebook page called, “Volunteer Network: Tornado Disaster Relief for Spalding County."
MAY 2, 2011- PRESENT
Over the next few days Volunteer Network doubled and tripled with people from Spalding County and all over the state asking for relief assignments.
A drop center was established at First Assembly in Griffin and the 3 coordinators (Emily, Danielle and Leah) began conducting operations from there.
Since its inception, Volunteer Network(VN) has mobilized over 3,000 volunteers from the community, various non-profit organizations and businesses. VN has partnered with many different organizations and has been able to provide thousands of pounds of food, countless articles of clothing, more than 300 crisis care packages, rent-free homes, and begin the process of rebuilding.
HISTORY
