Community Recovery of Lowndes County has begun taking applications for assistance, as well as volunteers, to help those affected by the Feb. 23 tornado that did millions of dollars of damage to public and private property in Columbus and Lowndes County.
On Monday, volunteers from as near as Columbus and as far as Belleville, Illinois, under the direction of CRLC and United Way of Lowndes County, began demolishing and removing debris from three homes on Shady Street, one of several streets in north Columbus that saw the most damage as a result of the tornado. They have also gone to houses on Waterworks Road to help install air conditioning units and repair roofs on homes that are still in livable condition.
The volunteers have been deployed in response to applications to CRLC case managers from residents requesting individual assistance, something federal and state entities cannot provide.
“We wanted to respond to what’s going on as quickly as we can,” said CRLC Board President Nicole Clinkscales. “All the work that’s being done is being done by volunteers.”
United Way of Lowndes County Executive Director Renee Sanders said Volunteer Director Errolyn Gray has been coordinating volunteer efforts on behalf of CRLC. Sanders said forming a separate nonprofit to focus just on disaster recovery makes the clean-up process more efficient.
“I’m on the (CRLC) board, so I’m aware of the needs, and because this is Errolyn’s full-time gig with United Way, it made sense for us to do it this way,” Sanders said. “It’s the most efficient and we know we’re getting volunteers we can trust.”
All CRLC committee and board members are volunteers, with the exception of two full-time, paid case managers, both of whom are paid by Mississippi United Methodist Disaster Relief. CRLC Case Management Chair Aislinn Kopp, who oversees both case managers, was unavailable for comment by press time.
‘Our goal is to serve everyone we can’
CRLC — which is under United Way’s umbrella as a 501(c)3, said Sanders — was formed as a way to respond to the community’s financial needs in the early days after the tornado and subsequent flooding. Because of its non-profit status, CRLC is eligible to receive government funds and other grants. CRLC also coordinates volunteers and manages recovery efforts, including home repairs and rebuilding, on a long-term basis.
Although the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency’s request for federal individual assistance — money allocated specifically to help Columbus and Lowndes County residents affected by the tornado and flooding — CRLC received a $250,000 disaster assistance grant from FEMA, which Lowndes County Emergency Management Agency will distribute to CRLC in $50,000 increments. That money can be used in response to applications for assistance with everything from rebuilding costs not covered by insurance to temporary housing for those displaced when their rental homes were badly damaged.
“We can respond to basic needs,” Clinkscales said. “Anything they need after the storm, we want to be able to provide.”
CRLC has also received donations from religious organizations and businesses, as well as gift cards from Walmart’s corporate office they have used to pay for some of those basic and immediate needs. Clinkscales said those funds will be used for building materials or other basic necessities. For larger expenses or more complicated issues, two full-time case managers have been taking applications for assistance for about two weeks and have received more than 80 applications.
A private committee of CRLC board members and volunteers review the applications with the applicants’ names redacted, Clinkscales said. Likewise, applicants don’t know committee members reviewing their applications, so the entire process is anonymous, to avoid any semblance of bias.
“Insofar as I know, we haven’t turned anyone away,” Clinkscales said. “We closed some cases right away because they were immediate needs we could take care of. We’re now trying to address the greater, more involved needs. … Our goal is to serve everyone we can. It just remains to be seen as far as the extent of what help we can offer.”
Lowndes County Board of Supervisors and Columbus City Council have both written letters of support to CRLC. Columbus Public Information Officer Joe Dillon, who also serves as the city’s hazard mitigation manager, told The Dispatch CRLC board members already met with both city administration and the zoning and inspection department, and the city is “standing by” to help however it can.
“We’re waiting to hear what we can do,” he said. “This is all new to us, so we’re still learning how we can assist them in the best way.”
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