Rather than heading to beach for the summer, Kirsten Shipley, sophomore, headed to Joplin, MO to volunteer a week of her time at the sight of the deadliest tornado since 1947 that killed 166 people and injured about 400 people.

“[My mission group] helped families get the items they needed but had lost from the tornado,” Shipley said. “We also got to interact with the people who had been affected. I got to hear all of their stories about how they live and how things had changed.”

Shipley and her mission group, Kirkwood United Methodist Church, were not the only ones making efforts to help.

“There were tons of families and mission groups there. People came from different states like Maryland, Texas and Pennsylvania,” Shipley said. “It was really inspiring to see so many people coming together to fix a town.”

By the end of the week-long trip, Shipley and her group felt as if they had accomplished a lot through their volunteer work.

“After we left, I felt we did so much, that I knew we really helped the families,” Shipley  said. “Realistically, though, there is still a lot needed to be done.”

While Shipley’s mission group helped sort household items in a warehouse, Drue Voorhees, sophomore, helped outside by cleaning up the debris from a couple of homes with her club field hockey team, AIM.

“It was so hard to take it out, because there was so much and it was everywhere,” Voorhees said. “But it was a little easier because there was a lot of help.”

When Voorhees and her team first arrived in Joplin, the scene was much different from what she had expected.

“It was so different from the pictures,” Voorhees said. “The full experience is different from seeing it somewhere else. We were almost in tears because of the destruction everywhere.”

“I saw a lot of teamwork,” Voorhees said. “People trying to get back on their feet after the tornado. The volunteers were all really nice and helpful. They were very positive and strong people.”

The Joplin residents have also noticed and are thankful for the relief efforts.

“It made me feel like the community is strong and we help each other out,” Emily Tarter, junior at McAuley Catholic High School in Joplin, said. “I feel better knowing people want to help the town out.”