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MAYFLOWER — It’s been almost a year since Taurs Garcia, 11, and his 6-year-old brother Martez, walked down the dark street with their father to the Fred’s store in Mayflower to find shelter from a tornado that obliterated homes and businesses in Mayflower and Vilonia April 27. In total, 15 people were killed.
“It was scary,” Taurs said. “It was loud, dark, I couldn’t see.”
But on March 19, the brothers along with their mother, Mary Garcia, were all smiles as they walked inside their new home, built by Habitat for Humanity of Faulkner County with the help of Catholic Charities of Arkansas as well as several other religious and charitable organizations.
“It means a lot,” said Mary Garcia, who was at work when the tornado hit. Their apartment complex was destroyed. “It means everything … We’re just blessed.”
The Garcias as well as six other families in Mayflower have a foundation to stand on thanks to the $35,000 Catholic Charities donated to provide the foundation for the houses, $5,000 for each home. Catholic Charities also paid for five lots in Vilonia.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at four of the homes on Fortner Road that stand where a mobile home park once was before being leveled by the tornado. Several speakers, including representatives from Habitat for Humanity and city officials, spoke and prayed with the crowd as the families anxiously waited to tour their new homes.
“Prayers do come true, don’t they,” Mayflower Mayor Randy Holland said to the crowd. He later told Arkansas Catholic, “That’s what it’s all about, us working together. God stood with us through the tornado, and he’s standing with us through the recovery.”
However, the heartache runs deep for the community.
“One of the fatalities happened over there,” said Tracy Eichenberger, disaster preparedness and response coordinator for Catholic Charities of Arkansas, pointing toward the field where houses now sit. “We’ve had a family that’s been living with friends since last April.”
“All of the people we’ve helped have been super appreciative … It’s a confirmation of God’s love and provisions because whenever we needed stuff, it’s showed up,” she added.
Families were presented with baskets full of housewarming gifts, including gift cards, a “Welcome” doormat, a weather radio and a cross.
The homes ranged from three bedrooms, in 1,400 square feet to two bedrooms in 1,096 square feet, and came complete with amenities like washers, dryers and ceiling fans. They were built by volunteers with Christian Aid Ministries, made up of members of Mennonite and Amish churches, Eichenberger said.
Beyond just a state effort, college students from New York with the Jewish Disaster Response Corps have spent their spring break helping to plant trees and other needed extras for this project.
“The (Hebrew) phrase ‘tikkun olam’ means ‘repairing the world,’” said senior Justin Morris, who attends State University of New York in Geneseo. “It’s about glorifying God.”
Eichenberger along with two other caseworkers with Catholic Charities helped select the families to benefit from this project. Under Habitat’s guidelines, the families had to attend classes on finance and budgeting and donate 50 volunteer hours. They also must pay about $350 to $450 each month on a no-interest loan toward the mortgage.
Catholic Charities of Arkansas has been at the front lines for disaster relief since the April 27 tornado, contributing thousands to rebuilding efforts and donations to displaced families, said Patrick Gallaher, executive director of Catholic Charities of Arkansas.
For this project, Eichenberger said the response has been “affirming” of God’s love, providing homes for people that even before the tornado may have never been able to afford one.
A prayer was said on the front porch of each home and a ceremonial key along with a Bible was given to each family for their “new beginning,” said Shenel Sandidge, director of the Habitat for Humanity of Faulkner County.
And one by one, families shared words of thanks with the crowd for turning “ashes into beauty,” as one said.
“I want to thank you all for being a part of this and for giving me the opportunity to have a home,” new homeowner Patsy Fortner said.
Homeowner Edith Ortiz said though the tornado was a tragedy, God turned the struggle into a “blessing in the end.”
“I give the glory to God,” she said.
