Nearly one month after a tornado tore through Cameron, Illinois, a fundraiser is planned to help the families still struggling to rebuild.
On Saturday, August 15, 2015, a fundraiser will be held at the baseball field in Cameron. Food will be served from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., the band Even Steven will provide music, and there will be kids' activities and raffle items. Donations will also be collected to help with tornado relief.
"It's the mental rebuilding, I think, that everybody's going through right now, that we're still struggling with... the fact that this was a traumatic experience and things will never be the same, but the rebuilding is happening, and we'll be stronger for it," said organizer Cheri Gipson.
On July 16, 2015, an EF-2 tornado hit the community of roughly 400 people. Almost one month later, you can still spot homes without roofs, snapped trees, and boarded up walls.
However, Gipson says not everything changed for the worse.
"You see people out walking, you see people out on their golf carts, just visiting. It feels like everything went back about 50 years, and the pace of life just slowed down. We're appreciating being together," said Gipson.
Gipson hopes Cameron residents, as well as people from surrounding communities, will come to Saturday's event.
You can find more information on how to help by visiting the Cameron Illinois Tornado Support Facebook page.