On the weekend of May 20/21, we will take up a special collection for the victims of the recent tornadoes in East Texas.
From Catholic Charities of Fort Worth:
"On Saturday night, April 29th, 4 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service to affect Henderson, Rains, Van Zandt, and Wood County. The tornadoes were categorized EF-0 to EF-4, with wind speeds reaching anywhere from 60-200 MPH. One tornado was half-a-mile wide and created a 40+ mile path of destruction. The initial American Red Cross damage assessments are 118 homes are either destroyed or have major damage. 197 homes overall were affected by these tornadoes. Early reports show that a high percentage of these homeowners have no insurance or are under-insured.
St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church was damaged in Emory, Texas. No one was harmed but the parish building has extensive damage. ... The best way to support the recovery effort is to participate in [the] Fort Worth Diocese Second Collection. All donated funds will go to support the local community in Tornado Recovery... The community recovery could take up to 2 years to complete and every dollar is appreciated."