By Shelby Shank
Field Editor

Perryton residents continue efforts to clean up after last week’s devastating storms and tornadoes. Several businesses and individuals have donated time, services, equipment and food.

One of those businesses is No Man’s Land Beef Jerky. The owners, Britt and Belinda Smith, are siblings and former Perryton residents, and they wanted to help the community.

The Smiths donated several packages of beef jerky to Ochiltree County Farm Bureau to aid in the local organization’s distribution of food to residents and volunteers.

“Our goal was to take care of the volunteers who are working to clean up the wreckage and the residents who lost their homes and businesses,” Britt said. “We thought this would be a perfect snack for them—high energy, high protein and just help in any way we could.”

Many homes and local businesses were destroyed, including city hall, the police department and the fire station, among others.

Many residents of Perryton and volunteers across the state have come together to assess the damage and help where needed.

“The volunteers are very vital to getting that town back together, so they can start to repair the gas lines, and the water, and all of that. That all has to be done before residents can ever even start to put their lives back together,” Britt said.

No Man’s Land Beef Jerky’s generous donation is admired by many, but the Smiths attribute their helping hand from God.

“We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the gift that God has given us, and this is to glorify God and show people what God has done for us through our lives and through our products,” Belinda said.

Donations are being accepted at any FirstBank Southwest location, the Perryton National Bank and the Interstate Bank in Perryton. Those who donate must state that the money is for survivors of the Perryton tornado.

Impacted Texans also are encouraged to complete the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT) self-reporting damage survey to help emergency management officials gain an understanding of damages that occurred during the recent severe weather and determine the state’s eligibility for various forms of federal disaster assistance.