 Lutheran Church Charities Disaster Response (DR) was invited by Rev. Dr. Paul Naumann at St. Michael Lutheran Church in Portage, Michigan, to provide chainsaw assistance and debris removal with heavy equipment following the devastating tornado that swept through Portage and Kalamazoo on May 7 causing widespread destruction. LCC Director of Disaster Response Kathy O’Day and DR Equipment Manager Jamie Miller, have deployed for the last three weeks with 31 LCC Lutheran Early Response Team (LERT) chainsaw volunteers to assist residents affected by this tornado. They were able to complete work at 31 homes, with half of these being multi-day sites due to the amount of trees down or damaged on their properties. The teams utilized a boom lift, three skid steers, and rigging skills to safely and efficiently remove these trees.  Adam Herringa; Chief Operating Officer of the Town of Portage (pictured with Kathy O'Day), Erik Wilson, Superintendent of Texas Township; and Joanne McFarland, President of Colony Woods Subdivision of Kalamazoo, expressed their sincere appreciation to Kathy O’Day and the LCC Lutheran Early Response Team (LERT) volunteers for serving in their communities and the willingness to assist homeowners they referred to the LERT team daily. They reported that 93 homes have been left uninhabitable and another 248 with major to minor damage. Many businesses also were affected. They do not anticipate receiving a FEMA declaration, so they have been relying heavily on community and outside groups' assistance, like LCC Disaster Response.
LERT volunteers completed a very technical job using the lift and their advanced training and experience to remove a very tall and dangerous leaning tree next to their home. The homeowners were so pleased with the professionalism during its removal, and now they can “breathe a sigh of relief” that their home is safe. They also were amazed that we would remove all the other downed trees from their yard. They showed the team an estimate they received for $50,000 to do all the work that the LERT volunteers did at no charge. They thanked each volunteer and told them what a blessing we have been to them.
Lutheran Church Charities Disaster Response thanks the following LCC LERT volunteers for their willingness to serve during all or part of the three-week deployment in Michigan. Many of these volunteers also served in Nebraska just before continuing their service in Michigan. ILLINOIS Immanuel, Batavia – Bill Pietsch Immanuel, DeKalb – Pete Springmire Immanuel, Dundee – Matt Flynn, Terry Fuelling Immanuel, Shobonier – Fran Collier Lord of Life, Elburn – Kevin Krage, Max Metz, Jeff Straughn, Larry Zagorski Prince of Peace, Palatine – Jim Beckley St. John, Wheaton – Byron Heidorn, Marty Johnson, Anna Piro, Rich Wren St. John, Wilmette – Tom Morrison St. Paul, Rockford – Dean and Carol Ulrich St. Peter, Schaumburg – Ken and Vicki Kiviranta Trinity, Lisle – Ed and Jan Boerman Zion, Ottawa – Dave and Cindy Reif INDIANA Christ, Valparaiso – Milan Coburn St. John, Dillsboro – Steve Black, Ruth Weisbrod WISCONSIN Brookfield, Brookfield – Laura Ciletti, Roger Kautz St. Paul, Grafton – Stu Natale
Lutheran Church Charities Disaster Response also thanks Pastor Naumann, Tammy Songer, and the congregation members from St. Michael’s and Zion Lutheran Churches for their hospitality, meals, and volunteers who served with the LERT team. It truly has been a blessing and privilege to serve in the Name of the Lord while representing your church in this community. We thank our generous donors and appreciate your faithful prayers and support for all of the communities affected by the catastrophic tornadoes and those responding to assist. Thanks to You, We Are Able to BE THERE!
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