I am the Music teacher for St. Marys Elementary, which was destroyed by the F5 tornado of May 22, 2011. My classes met on the stage in the cafeteria, and my office was in a small converted closet that also sat on the stage. By the end of the tornado, only the stage floor remained. Thus, I was 100% loss on classroom teaching materials. It is a very uncomfortable position to be in, asking strangers for help. I am amazed and blessed by the outpouring of support to date from friends, family, and anonymous angels, whether it be in the form of money, supplies, or prayers. Thank you for looking at my list and know that anything you do is immensely appreciated by both myself and my students of the 2011 - 2012 school year. God bless you!

Hola! Me llamo Margie Black. I also teach Spanish at St. Marys Elementary as well as PE! It is an interesting combination of subjects! Our school was destroyed by the May 22nd tornado here in Joplin, MO. We, along with many others, have experienced devastation like no one could imagine. As we move forward and try to discover a new normal we are charged with the task of rebuilding our schools so that we can provide a safe haven and a sense of normalcy for our children who have been through too much already in their young lives. Having lost all classroom materials acquired over a 22 year teaching career, my challenge is to try to replicate a learning environment for my students. I love what I do, and I cant imagine doing anything else! I am in need of grade level (grades 1-5) Spanish workbooks and activity books, flash cards, bi-lingual age-appropriate books, decorations, posters, vocabulary builders, manipulatives, CDs, DVDs and anything else that makes learning Spanish fun! It is a mulit-cultural society in which we live, and when we can build communication and promote cultural diversity everybody wins! Your willingness to help our students attain some familiarity while trying to process all that has happened helps them in more ways than you know. We are blessed to live in a world where others reach out to those in need. MUCHAS GRACIAS!

Our school was hit by the May 22nd tornado in Joplin, MO. We are a Catholic school with limited funding resources. Our Physical Education equipment was destroyed, along with everything else. We had just received a WII for the kids to use in our cafegymatorium on rainy days. That, along with the rest of our equipment--various balls, scooters, nets, parachutes, games, and other P.E. equipment are gone. P.E. is a great outlet for our kids and an opportunity to learn life-long activities that promote a healthy lifestyle. If you remember being in your elementary P.E. classes and the fun you had, perhaps you can help provide that same experience for our St. Marys students! Any help with obtaining equipment for our students is greatly appreciated! God bless you for your kindness and generosity. Recently we received the go-ahead to rebuild and have seen the plans for our new school! It will be another year and a half before we are in it, but at least we have a direction--a very good one--in which we are heading. As we get closer to getting into our new school, I know we will have a great need for PE equipment, as we have been sharing a facility and equipment with the junior high and high school! Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts!

Thank you much to all who have donated to St. Mary's teachers. The second year of being in our temp building is coming to an end. We have one more year here. The new building will be done in Aug. of 2014, I hope. The new school will be so big compared to what we are in and the needs will be big too. I can't wait, but I'm scared too. So many things have changed and we have had so little say about any of it. God will take care of us, but it is scary to let go and let God handle it.God Bless everyone and keep us in your prayers.

On May 22,2011 many lives were changed in Joplin, Mo. An EF-5 tornado devasted many lives, homes, businesses, and schools. St. Marys School was included in the devastation. I have taught at St. Marys for 32 years and have taken great pride in being a part of such a wonderful school family. Much of my classroom materials is missing or covered in debris. I have lost many learning materials, math manipulatives, resource books, bulletin board items, etc. A huge loss is a collection of books that I have accumulated over a number of years. Because of the trauma many students have experienced, I would like to meet their needs and make this year as stress free as possible. Having the necessary teaching aids is essential. I have received help from many wonderful people but because we are a parochial school we do not receive state or federal aid. I would be grateful for whatever help is still available.

St. Mary’s School in Joplin was one of the schools destroyed by the May 22, 2011, EF-5 tornado. I have taught 32 years and have accumulated a variety of learning materials that include teacher resource books, learning manipulatives, and reading books for the children. Since our school is a parochial school most of the resources and materials were purchased with my own money. I was able to save some of my materials even though they were covered with insulation and possibly asbestos. Some were damaged from the moisture. Our bishop said we will begin school on August 17th, but we are patiently waiting to hear from our insurance as to what we will receive and where our temporary school will be located. I would like to start the year with a sense of normalcy for my students, as well as, for myself. Because of Christian people like you we will be able to continue teaching Joplin area children to follow Christ at St. Mary’s School. Thank you for considering this request and any donation is much appreciated.

It has been over 2 months since a tornado ripped through the middle of our city. Every day is proving to be a new day of challenges and blessings. We have been sooo enormously blessed by the generosity of others. We have learned a new lesson in what it means to reach out to those in need. We have been reminded so graciously what it means to give without counting the costs. We have learned what it means to pray with our whole heart, both prayers of thanksgiving and prayers for continued healing and strength. We have learned this through the continued example of others reaching out to us, total strangers. I ask for your continued help in our rebuilding process as we begin to gather items to begin a new year in a new school atmosphere. I continue to ask you for your prayers. We continue to need prayers for healing and emotional strength. As we near a new school year of new beginnings I ask for you to pray for our teachers and staff. Pray for us to have patience with the process and to have patience with each other, as we all have our own way of dealing with stressful times. Pray that we can be an example of love to all who we meet each day. Pray that we can be as strong of an example of love as those who have poured out many hours of countless volunteering and those who have loaded up trucks of donations to send to us, total strangers in their eyes. We are all a family in Christ which is the tie that binds us all and makes us now, not strangers, but brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank you!

St. Mary’s School in Joplin was one of the schools destroyed by the May 22, 2011, EF-5 tornado. I have taught eight years and have accumulated a variety of learning materials that include teacher resource books, learning manipulatives, and reading books for the children. Since our school is a parochial school most of the resources and materials were purchased with my own money. I was unable to save most of my materials due to the roof collapsing on my classroom. The few things that I did save were damaged from the moisture or covered with insulation and possibly asbestos. Our bishop said we will begin school on August 17th, but we are patiently waiting to hear from our insurance as to what we will receive and where our temporary school will be located. I would like to start the year with a sense of normalcy for my students, as well as, for myself. Because of Christian people like you we will be able to continue teaching Joplin area children to follow Christ at St. Mary’s School.

I have taught at St. Marys Grade School for 37 years. I love teaching and have always loved being a part of St. Marys faith community and watching my children grow up and become adult members of that community. I have had several children of past students over the years. St. Marys School has always been a home away from home for me. On May 22, a tornado destroyed much of Joplin and, with it, our school. The roof over my classroom was blown away and all most everything was ruined as it rained for two days after the tornado. All of my books, posters,pictures, bulleton board materials and activities were either blown away or ruined because of water damage.A donation to our classroom will help me to replace some of the books and materials we have lost. God bless you and thank you for your help.

St. Marys school was destroyed by the EF-5 tornado that hit Joplin on May 22,2011. I have taught at St. Marys for 17 years and have accumulated many teaching materials throughout those years. The tornado caused the roof to collapse on my classroom, making it impossible to retrieve the majority of my classroom items. It is too early to determine what insurance will reinburse. Because we are a parochial school we do not receive federal or state aid. In order to meet our students needs we rely on tuition and private donations. Like most classroom teachers, I have purchased many of my teaching materials with my own money. It is hard to describe the enormous loss our school has experienced. I would appreciate any support you could give to help rebuild my students future school year. Thank you!

On May 22,2011 many lives were changed in Joplin, Mo. An EF-5 tornado devasted many lives, homes, businesses, and schools. St. Marys School was included in the devastation. I have taught at St. Marys for 18 years and have taken great pride in being a part of such a wonderful school family. Much of my classroom materials is missing or covered in debris. I have lost many learning materials, math manipulatives, resource books, bulletin board items, etc. A huge loss is a collection of books that I have accumulated over a number of years. Because of the trauma many students have experienced, I would like to meet their needs and make this year as stress free as possible. Having the necessary teaching aids is essential. I have received help from many wonderful people but because we are a parochial school we do not receive state or federal aid. I would be grateful for whatever help is still available

St. Mary’s School in Joplin was one of the schools destroyed by the May 22, 2011, EF-5 tornado. I have taught for eighteen years and have accumulated a variety of learning materials that include teacher resource books, learning manipulatives, and reading books for the children. I love science and want to continue doing hands on activities. Since our school is a parochial school most of the resources and materials were purchased with my own money. I was unable to save most of my materials due to the roof collapsing on my classroom. The few things that I did save were damaged from the moisture or covered with insulation and possibly asbestos. I would like to start the year with a sense of normalcy for my students, as well as, for myself. Because of Christian people like you we will be able to continue teaching Joplin area children to follow Christ at St. Mary’s School. Thank You.

I have been teaching at St. Marys for 19 years. I choose to teach in a Catholic School because I believe sharing my faith and beliefs should be a part of my everyday life. Teaching for me is a vocation not a job. Unfortunately on May 22, 2011, the school I attended as a student and now teach in was destroyed in the devastating tornado in Joplin, MO. After the rain ended, I was able to retrieve some of the items in my classroom, but most of the educational materials,including furniture, were too soaked or covered with dirt and insulation to salvage. My classroom was a hands-on Kindergarten classroom using play and real life experiences to learn. The classroom was filled with many teacher created and directed activities involving time and manipulatives to process learning. Most of the items were purchased by the teachers, parents, and with donations. The 19 year collection of materials I had in my classroom were not only my favorites, but also the childrens favorites. Our school was insured, but we are not sure how many of our learning materials, teacher resources, and classroom materials will be replaced. Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for helping the students of St. Marys. May God bless you!

On May 22, 2011, my school was destroyed in the devastating tornado in Joplin, MO. I was able to salvage some of the items in my classroom, but most of the furniture and learning materials were either destroyed or covered with dirt, insulation, and possibly asbestos. In my classroom I try to provide a mix of teacher directed learning activities along with ample time and materials for children to learn through play. The materials I had in my classroom were the result of 17 years of trial and error and a collection of materials that were not only my favorites, but also the childrens favorites. Our school was insured, but our future remains uncertain. We are not sure how many of our learning materials will be replaced. Any help that a donor can give will be greatly appreciated, no matter how small! Thank you for considering this request. God bless you!