Recovery from the EF-3 tornado last year is far from over, residents told the Naperville City Council this week.
While the rest of the city has moved on from the June 20, 2021, storm, five speakers Tuesday said people living near 75th Street and Ranchview Drive are still facing hardships.
“Like so many in my subdivision, the Father’s Day tornado caused my family untold anguish. We’ve all paid tremendous physical, mental and financial costs,” said Kevin Austin, a resident of Cinnamon Creek.
The initial outpouring of sympathy for people affected by the tornado was heartwarming, and Austin said he was hopeful insurance would settle his claim quickly.
But days became weeks, and weeks became months, and “my subdivision is still not 100% restored,” he said.
Neighbors not hit directly by the tornado created Ranch View Area Community Assistance to coordinate volunteer efforts and help homeowners navigate bureaucratic red tape.
While the group was supposed be temporary, a year later members said they want to shift their efforts toward funding neighborhood restoration.
Because they are not a nonprofit, group members asked the council for help in finding a partner so they can go after grant money and so donors know they’re acting responsibly with the money they’ve collected for Naperville residents.
Kristy Kennedy, who cofounded Ranch View Area Community Assistance, said she was aware of three fundraising efforts in Naperville. But proceeds from all three went to the Red Cross general fund and to Woodridge.
Outside an initial gift card program and the efforts of an Oswego nonprofit and some local businesses, “no meaningful fundraising has gone to help people here in Naperville,” Kennedy said.
“Think about that. There is no nonprofit here in Naperville fundraising and helping people impacted by the tornado here in Naperville,” she said.
A former Naperville Central High School student who raised $6,200 in an online tornado fundraiser last year has yet to donate it, Kennedy said, because the young woman can’t find a group in town that will guarantee that it will go toward people in Naperville.
Kennedy also said an elementary school group and a neighborhood business are interested in hosting fundraisers and the Ranchview Area Community Assistance would like to apply for private grants.
What the group wants to find is a nonprofit organization that can act as a fiscal agent to raise and distribute money responsibly and transparently.
“The partnership will allow us to apply for grant funding, provide us with liability insurance, bookkeeping and an audit, and we will pay for those costs,” Kennedy said.
Kelly Dougherty, Ranch View Area Community Assistance cofounder, said yard cleanup has come to the forefront as a way to provide residents with meaningful financial help since insurance often does not cover landscaping.
Lurking just under the surface neighbors’ yards is dangerous debris left by the tornado, said Wesley Gosselink, also with Ranchview Area Community Assistance.
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Whenever it rains, pieces of glass, wood, metal and other materials make their way through the soil into the grass and yards, Gosselink said.
“Sending your children out to play or walking your dog becomes like walking in a minefield of dangerous debris,” she said.
Council members and staff said they’d be willing to spread the word to charities that might be able to offer assistance.