One day before Shannon Bailey turned 1 year old her mother was at Roses Department Store in Bennettsville shopping for supplies for the birthday party she had planned for her daughter. A few minutes after she left the store it was blown away by the massive tornado that hit Bennettsville on March 28, 1984. Thankfully for Shannon the only thing she missed was a birthday party because her mother made it home safely that evening. Others were not so fortunate.
As the Bennettsville community pulls together to collect relief supplies for the Joplin tornado victims more stories are emerging from how it affected the lives of local residents when it hit the area over 27 years ago. Many areas were wipped out much like the scenes from the Joplin area are today. It took many years to rebuild here too but we did overcome the deveastation and are doing our part to help the citizens of Joplin just as we were helped when we had our storm.
Donation collections continue through tomorrow in Bennettsville before we send our care packages to the people of Joplin. A hot dog plate sale will be held at 133 Hwy 15-401 Bypass in Bennettsville with all proceeds going to the tornado victims in Joplin. In addition a silent auction for a 1 week stay in an ocean front 2BR/2BA condo will also benefit the tornado relief efforts. Contact Jenna Kinard for more information 843-479-7151.
