At the Emergency Operations Center, Jody Herrington (left), along with Tennessee officials, Mayor Shelvy Linville and OBI President Bill Horan (far right) strategize plans for the volunteer event.

MACON COUNTY, Tenn. - With a crew of nearly 800 volunteers and heavy construction equipment on hand, Operation Blessing and Tennessee county and state officials began massive clean-up efforts in tornado-devastated Macon County last Saturday.

The one-day event pooled together key partnerships including Macon County and Tenn. Emergency Management Teams, Mayor Shelvy Linville, Macon County EMS, Tenn. State Troopers, Macon County Sheriff's Department, Tenn. State GIS Team, Lafayette Police Department, TDOT, TEMA and National Guard.

A second volunteer event also took place in Sumner County. Together, the joint events coordinated the help of more than 1,100 general volunteers as well as specialized labor volunteers able to operate heavy equipment.

More than 1,000 volunteers gathered at locations in Macon and Sumner Counties to begin county-wide clean-up efforts.

"It was a huge success," said Jody Herrington, OBI's director of U.S. disaster relief. "I was blown away at what we accomplished as a team."

More than 10,196 volunteer hours totaling nearly $200,000 worth of services were provided from both events. Additional volunteer teams from AmeriCorps groups based in Sacramento, Calif., and Mobile, Ala., arrived on Sunday to help continue to the work already started.

In addition to mobilizing volunteers for debris clean-up, OBI’s has provided relief to two states (Ark. and Tenn.) and five counties; delivering more than 118,000 lbs. of disaster relief supplies including personal hygiene items, toiletries, diapers, and snacks; supplying more than $10,000 in cash grants; assisting victims with FEMA registration and more.

HOW YOU CAN HELP
You can help by making an online donation toward OBI's disaster relief efforts. With your support, we can continue to provide emergency relief and recovery. Please make an on-line donation today.

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