Long-term Recovery Committee establishes August 15 deadline for those affected by Bollinger County tornado

BOLLINGER COUNTY, Mo. (KBSI) – “We need to know how many cases we’re going to be working with to see how we can stretch our fund.” 

Juanita Welker with the Bollinger County Health Center said this is why the Long-Term Recovery Committee has set an August 15th deadline to submit a claim. 

“We’re being conservative, but we need to move forward,” she said. “There are some people who are needing help, but we can’t give them the full amount because we want to make this fund last as long as we can.” 

And so, the committee is asking those who need assistance, or may need assistance in the future, to contact Catholic Charities prior to the deadline. 

“Call Catholic Charities. Give them a call and get a case started, and we’ll try to work with them the best we can,” Welker said.

The committee consists of organizations like United Way of Southeast Missouri, of which Executive Director Elizabeth Shelton echoed Welker in saying, “The committee needs a better understanding of how much help people are going to need, and so far, they really haven’t heard from many people who are seeking financial assistance.” 

Shelton reminded people that even if they don’t have the two estimates necessary, they can still contact Catholic Charities if they foresee the need for assistance down the line. 

“They need to contact Catholic Charities even if they don’t have the estimates or everything now because they just need to get their case on file and give the committee an understanding of what they might be needing in the future,” Shelton said.

The phone number for Catholic Charities is 573-335-0905. If you have already contacted Catholic Charities and received a case number, there is no need to call again.