{"id":538,"date":"2022-01-15T21:56:44","date_gmt":"2022-01-15T21:56:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=538"},"modified":"2022-01-15T21:56:44","modified_gmt":"2022-01-15T21:56:44","slug":"make-smart-donations-to-midwest-tornado-victims-southern-illinois-officials-say-the-southern","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=538","title":{"rendered":"Make smart donations to Midwest tornado victims, Southern Illinois officials say – The Southern"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Allen Ninness, director of Saline County Emergency Management Agency, said donors need to be smart when trying to help tornado victims.
Like the people of Harrisburg who weathered the Feb. 29, 2012 tornado, those affected by Friday\u2019s tornadoes in Kentucky and elsewhere will need many things, as well as volunteer help, for many weeks and months to come.
\u201cCash is the most useful thing,\u201d Ninness said. \u201cOrganizations can turn it into anything they need.\u201d
Sometimes, it’s possible to have too much of a good thing. An example of this is when the Mayfield-Graves County Fairgrounds had to announced 1 a.m. Monday that they were no longer accepting clothing donations for tornado victims.
\u201c\u2026 If you or someone you know in our area needs clothing, please visit Pryorsburg Independent Methodist Church. They graciously took and are sorting clothes so we could make room for other essentials,\u201d their post read.
Clothing brings a problem with it. Donated clothing needs resource personnel to sort and size it, according to Ninness.
He also suggests donating money to larger organizations that always help in natural disasters, such as the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and organizations such as Baptist Disaster Relief. Those organizations have proven they will use the funds to help disaster victims.
Ninness said they received so many donations after the Harrisburg tornado that they could not use all of the items. Those unused items were sent to Indiana to help storm victims there.
\u201cWe were thankful for the things we got,\u201d he said.
Ninness said this most recent storm system hit a large area. \u201cIn this case, not just one town was hit. There was damage on Princeton and Dawson Springs. I\u2019m sure small communities will have needs,\u201d he said.
Karen Mullins, of the Marion Chamber of Commerce, was sharing requests from a group of Marion businesses accepting donations at HireLevel, 3911 W. Ernestine Lane; Country Financial office of Natasha and Tony Stearns, 2720 W. Main St. Suite A; any First Southern Bank location in Marion; and Black Diamond Harley-Davidson, 2405 Black Diamond Drive.
\u201cMoney is still going to be the big thing,\u201d Mullins said.
Next, she suggested flashlights, batteries and lanterns; matches and candles; warm clothing, shoes and socks for children and adults.
Niness said the people in Mayfield and other damaged communities will ask for specific items as they are needed.
He added that they will need volunteers, not just now, but for weeks and months.
He also said volunteerism and even some donations can be spread out. He said people can do things at home to raise money now, then volunteer in a week or two by plugging into a group.
\u201cIt is better to show up with a group of 15 or 20 and already have a job to help out,\u201d Ninness said.
He said recovery in Harrisburg took a good two years. Recovery from this storm will take a long time.
Sherri McKinney, regional director of communications for the American Red Cross \u2013 Tennessee Region, said many people can help out by donating blood.
An American Red Cross Emergency Blood Drive is set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday at Sedalia Elementary School, 5252 State Route 97, in Mayfield. Anyone who lives in the area or is volunteering can donate.
To register or find a blood drive, visit redcrossblood.org<\/a> or on the Red Cross Blood phone app prior to arrival.
marilyn.halstead@thesouthern.com<\/a>
618-351-5078<\/p>\n

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Reporter
Marilyn Halstead is a reporter covering Williamson County.
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\u201cIf it fits, it ships,\u201d is the motto of one local church aiding relief efforts for the Dec. 10 tornado that could have easily hit Southern Illinois, Rick Pierson said.<\/p>\n

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Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter.Allen Ninness, director of Saline County Emergency Management Agency, said donors need to be smart when trying to help tornado victims.Like the people of Harrisburg who weathered the Feb. 29, 2012 tornado, those affected by Friday\u2019s tornadoes in Kentucky and elsewhere will need many things, as well as volunteer help, for many weeks and months<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-538","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t