Under Attack

After a recent segment on Channel 5 news raising questions about the Long Term Recovery of Macon County and the money donated to help the survivors of the February 5th tornado, I sat down with LTRMC President Terry Gillim on Friday afternoon, August 15th. With allegations running rampant, he wanted to talk, and I listened.

“Our goal has always been to get people back into a safe, sanitary and secure home as quickly as possible,” Terry Gillim maintains. “We are here to help all storm survivors rebuild.”

“We have never had $200,000.00 donated directly to the LTRMC fund but more than that amount has been donated to the community through churches, banks, and the VFW, which they have each distributed on their own.”

“We have to the very best of our ability distributed our funds in accordance with the guidelines and policies that we have in place.”

“In the early stages we assisted with the cleanup of probably 35 farms and homes occupying hundreds of acres of land covered with debris from miles around,” Gillim continued, “and to date we have dealt with over 350 volunteers who have come into our community offering their help.”

“We have over 25 clients who have gone through our in-take process who we have helped to rebuild their homes.”

“It is disappointing that the three individuals chose to go to News Channel 5 and air their grievances without discussing it with the LTRMC.”

“After checking our records those individuals had not completed our in-take requirements needed for assistance; therefore they are not eligible for funds until the financial information is completed, verified, and evaluated. It would be unfair of us as a long term recovery program to assist a storm survivor until their resources are fully evaluated.”

“With the LTRMC we have a huge sense of responsibility to be good stewards of the monies that were donated to our organization and that is why there must be verification of a client's financial needs before any amount can be disbursed.”

“Up until this point the news media including the newspapers, televisions and radio have been excellent in reporting the facts and giving a clear picture of what has happened in our community,” Gillim noted.

“From the very beginning people in Macon County have worked very hard to meet the needs of those who suffered loss after the deadly twister devastated parts of our area.”

“I have been very proud to be a part of the LTRMC which is such a close knit group of people whose desire has been to help their neighbors. We have done the best we can to follow our policies and procedures, and we will continue to do so,” said Gillim.

“My door has always been open.” Gillim concluded, “and will remain open to answer questions and help anyway I can.”