Out in Henryville, Ind., where residents are still reeling from last week?s devastating tornadoes, Wilbraham firefighter Jason A. Dimitropolis was known simply as ?Massachusetts.?
Dimitropolis, 26, of East Longmeadow, flew out to Henryville on Monday and got home Thursday night, taking with him supplies and $500 worth of gift cards his brother and mother collected in Monson, which is still recovering from a June 1 twister.
He also took with him his knowledge of being a first responder - he was called in to duty when the tornadoes struck Western Massachusetts last year.
?This is what we train for,? he said.
Even seeing a tornado?s destruction firsthand did not quite prepare him for the level of damage in Indiana.
?It?s a whole new world . . . Everything here is destroyed,? Dimitropolis said on Thursday from Henryville. ?There are only a handful of buildings standing.?
?We?re talking an entire town. Everything in this town is gone. Their stores, and their gas stations, everything is gone.?
Dimitropolis said he headed to the Henryville Fire Department, one of the few buildings still standing, where he helped sort equipment and supplies, and assembled packages containing food, toiletries and blankets for the townspeople. He chose the small town ? population 1,900 ? because of its proximity to the airport.
?The first responders, everything they had is gone. It?s unbelievable the amount of devastation,? Dimitropolis said.
He also spent his time helping residents sift through the rubble of their homes, trying to find personal items. He recovered photo albums, war medals, a coffee mug.
He walked to the nearby town of Marysville, approximately 10 miles away, where the damage was just as bad.
?They lost everything,? Dimitropolis said.
Dimitropolis said his brother Sean, who runs the This & That shop in downtown Monson, and his mother, Brenda Tibbetts, who runs Tibbetts Optical next door, collected the items. His mother?s business sustained tornado damage, and was closed for several weeks for repairs. He said he gave out the cards to those who looked like they could use the help.
?I had the time off and the ability to help. I figured, why not?? Dimitropolis said. ?It?s been completely worth it down here. I can?t tell you how many smiles, how many handshakes, I?ve gotten.?
He said everyone is focused on helping one another, and they are trying to make the best of the situation. There were 39 fatalities from the deadly tornadoes that swept through the Midwest and South last week.
Now, his younger brother, Sean, 24, will drive out to the Midwest on Sunday, towing a trailer of goods from Monson.
?My family was affected by the tornado (in Monson). It?s the least I can do to pay it forward. I?m lucky that my mom survived and didn?t get hurt,? Sean Dimitropolis said.
Sean Dimitropolis said his first stop will be Harrisburg, Ill., a town that he said Monson has ?adopted? in the tornado aftermath.
Local Realtor Karen King coordinated a Facebook page for that town ? Harrisburg Tornado Help - as a way for residents to communicate needs after the tornadoes. King said they adopted Harrisburg because it is a small town like Monson.
She also created pages for Henryville and Marysville on Facebook. Items needed are posted on those pages, as well as on the Monson Tornado Watch 2011 Facebook page.
It will take Sean Dimitropolis 18 hours to drive to Harrisburg. Then he will head to Henryville, five hours away. Sean Dimitropolis said he has more gift cards and cash donations, as well as cards made by Monson students to give to the residents. He said he will be working with the Henryville Fire Department and First Baptist Church in Harrisburg to distribute donated items.
King said seeing the television footage of the tornadoes brought back memories of June 1, and she had to do something to help. Her street angels volunteer group will meet Saturday to pack the donated items. Whatever is not needed will be used for the Monson families still recovering from the tornado, she said.
?They need the same stuff that we did,? King said about the Midwestern tornado victims.
Those items include work gloves, wash cloths, flash lights, tissues and disinfecting wipes. Soap and shampoo are not needed. Donations have poured in.
?There are people who are still really hurting around here, but I think it?s part of their healing. They had to ask for things for nine months. This is their way to help people,? King said.
The Monson Senior Center is taking donations for the Golden Circle Senior Center in Harrisburg, which was destroyed. Monson Senior Center Director Lori M. Stacy said this is part of the new ?seniors helping seniors? effort, and they raised $300 so far.
?This money is coming from our seniors,? Stacy said. ?Personally we were so grateful to everyone. Lots of Senior Centers from all over the state of Massachusetts reached out to us after the tornado.?
?You can?t pay back all the volunteers that were here in town, but you can help someone else,? Stacy said.
Kimberly A. Baker has been collecting items at her East Hill Road in Monson for the Midwest tornado victims. She had ?minor damage? from last year?s tornado. Baker said she is not surprised by the outpouring of help from Monson to the Midwest.
?I think maybe we realized what (a tornado) does to a community. We?re more empathetic. We know how much it meant to us as a community, to have all these people rally around us,? Baker said.
Source: http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2012/03/western_massachusetts_resident_7.html
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