By Jennifer Dorsett
Field Editor
One week after Hurricane Laura blew through Texas, Cherokee County Farm Bureau (CFB) leaders made their way to two East Texas counties to deliver a load of fencing supplies.
It was an effort to pay back some of the kindness shown to Cherokee County farmers and ranchers after a devastating EF-3 tornado hit the town of Alto and other portions of the county in April 2019.
“As we got into Newton County and began to see the destruction the storm left behind, it brought back many memories for us,” Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) District 9 State Director and Cherokee County resident John Griffith said. “The damage was very widespread. There were a lot of trees were down and a lot that needed to be cleaned up.”
Other county leaders delivered personal hygiene and food items earlier in the week, and Griffith delivered a load of fencing supplies to Newton and Sabine counties to assist in rebuilding fences that were blown down or destroyed.
“We’ve been in contact with county directors from Farm Bureaus in affected areas, and those were two immediate points we thought would benefit them directly and quickly,” Griffith said. “This was our ‘give back’ opportunity. There was such an outpouring of generosity after the tornado hit us, and we just wanted to pay it forward.”
Plans are still in the preliminary stages, but other counties in TFB districts 9 and 11 are eager to help in any way they can.
“We’re still allowing those who were affected to gather their thoughts and assess damages, and then we’ll move forward with whatever supplies or help they need,” he said.
The National Guard has set up checkpoints in the area to deliver meals-ready-to-eat, and other organizations were providing ice and bottled water to residents, as well as cooking meals and offering other services to those in need.
Griffith noted there are also ongoing efforts by TFB members to donate supplies to Louisianians who were impacted by Hurricane Laura.
“We were very blessed in Texas to be on the calm side of the storm,” he said. “We still saw quite a bit of damage, but our Louisiana friends have been hit very hard there, so we know how fortunate we’ve been this time. Severe weather can affect any one of us at any time, but the generosity shown by Farm Bureau members is always overwhelming.”