Blessed? ......... No, BLESSED!!!!

                             The remains of Stokes-Beard Elementary School in Columbus, Mississippi

During the upcoming holiday season, the residents of Columbus, Mississippi will have a few more reasons to give thanks.  On November 10, 2002 at around 7:30 p.m., an F3 tornado ripped through the town leaving a path of destruction.  According to the November 17, 2002 edition of The Commercial Dispatch, it is estimated that 90 homes, 21 mobile homes, 9 apartments, and 12 businesses were destroyed or irreparable in the Lowndes County area. There were also 307 homes, 23 mobile homes, 16 apartments, and 38 businesses damaged. Salem was not in the storm area. 

Stokes-Beard Elementary School (pictured above) will have to be completely rebuilt.  The roof was partially ripped off and the walls caved in on many of the classrooms.  A vast majority of its students live nearby, so many of their homes received damage as well.  The upcoming months will be a huge adjustment for the students and staff of this school, but at least no one lost their life.  There is little doubt that if this tornado had come 12 – 14 hours later, we would have had a serious situation on our hands.  Keeping this in mind, I think that it is safe to say that we are blessed.

Another amazing story comes from the campus of MUW.  Mississippi University for Women (admitting men since 1982) received millions of dollars of damage.  Even though there were some injuries on campus, none were as bad as we expected. It was only by the grace of God, that no one was seriously injured or killed.  The heavily damaged gym is located right across the street from the dorms.  If the tornado had moved further east, four dorms containing hundreds of students would have been in harms way.   This could have been a total tragedy for the community and the state, but because it wasn’t, we are blessed.

Sooner or later, things will be back to normal, but in the meantime remember us in your prayers.  Pray for the families who lost their homes, business owners that lost their businesses, workers that lost their jobs, and the family that lost a loved one. Pray that the leaders of our community will make the right decisions during our rebuilding stage and pray that the community can continue this unity after the storm damage is long gone.  All and all, things aren’t as good as they could have been; but considering the circumstances, I still say that this community was truly blessed.

click here for more storm damage pictures