05/15/2017
The Joplin Tornado House of Hope AKA "The Volunteer House" has been demolished.
A decision was made by the City of Joplin to preserve some of the writings upon the walls and structure throughout the house for display in the museum and city Hall.
Pieces of those sections were cut out and removed before the remainder of the house was demolished and hauled off to the land fill.
It is with mixed emotions that I write this. My endeavor from the day I spray painted the messages on the walls of the house was to boost the spirits of all who were involved in the recovery and rebuilding process and to give encouragement and hope where it seemed was lost.
The house soon became "adopted" by residents and volunteers alike who wanted to pen their words of love and encouragement to all who suffered and had losses.
The New York times called the house "a love letter in ruins" and an organic memorial. The article continued: "For now, though, the house stands, oddly resilient to the deconstructive power of the storm and the constructive power of the rebuilding city, speaking to a moment in between that will be harder to explain when it is gone."
The time has come where that love letter is now gone, save it be a few selected pieces. What was oddly resilient to the deconstructive power of the storm, was no match for the steel jaws that so easily brought it to a pile of rubble that was tossed in a dumpster and dump trucks to find its resting place in the landfill.
On the one hand I am sad that all the good will, love, and hundreds of thousands of hours of effort to rescue Joplin that was manifest upon and within the walls of the house are forever gone and laid to rest.
On the other hand, I am glad for the efforts of those within the city government who tasked themselves with saving and preserving some of that love letter. Chief among them was Patrick Tuttle, who always saw the deeper meaning of what was to many simply the ruins of a nasty tornado.
I am also glad that there were many people and news agencies who, through pictures and videos were able to capture and preserve so much of what now resides in the landfill. We may not have the physical wood, tile, bricks, pipes, and concrete that were covered with messages of love, encouragement, and support, but we have the pictures to remind us.
Patrick had given me a "heads up" when the decision was made to demolish the house, so I was able to watch and take pictures. I took many pictures and videos, which I will be posting soon.
At the end of the day, while much of the house was lost, those who understood the meaning of the house as not only a love letter to Joplin, but a tribute to the volunteers who came and lifted us up, did the best we could to preserve as much as we could, whether physically or in pictures and videos.
As the anniversary of that eventful day comes around again, the memories of the negative are crowded out to the back of my mind by the miracles and the overwhelming love, support, and encouragement that I witnessed so much first-hand over a period of several months- that are now forever a part of me.
My life has forever changed so much for the good in ways I find it difficult to fully express. I am forever grateful for all who helped us recover. I am forever grateful for all who shared in my desire to honor the volunteers to the fullest extent possible. One of the messages I wrote on the living room wall after the storm was "Down, Not Out!!" At this moment, the house may have suffered another blow in being demolished, but like the survivors, it is down... again, but definitely not out- maybe best to just think of it as being "down-sized."
I have said it before, and I can never say it enough, THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS, WE LOVE YOU! YOU ARE OUR HEROES!!"
