B.A.S.S. staffers took time out of their schedules to help residents clean up their Joplin, Mo. homes this week. They are in the area visiting Table Rock Lake for the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Central Divisional Championship.
B.A.S.S. Tournament Manager Jon Stewart and his son Brett, used to call the Joplin area home.
“We felt like we couldn’t be this close and not go and do whatever we could,” Stewart said. “When the rest of the staff found out that we were going, they wanted to go, too.”
The group spent the day cleaning up folks’ yards, which is where much help is currently needed before other restorations can get underway. Those who went were: Jon and Brett Stewart, Pee Wee Powers, Eric Nichols and Mike Wall.
Stewart said that those who are interested in helping out can do a Web search of “Joplin relief” and find a slew of things they can do, from volunteering time to donating money.
“There’s total devastation where the tornado went through,” Stewart said. “It took a 1/2-mile path through the heart of the city about 6 or 7 miles long. It’s amazing the death toll wasn’t in the 1000s. These folks will need help for a long, long time.
Check out their photos and videos of the destruction.