Beyond Their Darkest Hours The original estimate for this came in at around $10,000, although, through competitive bidding, that price was almost cut in half. “All I had was $33,000 and I had just put $10,000 down on my mobile home, replaced all of the water pipes, and then this came up,” Hale said. “I just kept deducting and deducting and knew I was not going to have anything left.” Desperate to try to find assistance, Hale had heard about the Marshall County Non-Profit Foundation and their efforts knew I could not help them with the things they really needed in that moment.” Dotson said resources began rolling into the community. As the Governor toured impacted areas, FEMA, the Small Business Administration, and the American Red Cross set up information centers in the City of Benton. “Iwas getting calls fromall over the county frompeople asking for help, askingwhere they could go. I remember one day I just stood there and cried. Iwas so overwhelmed and just didn’t knowhowI could help everyone, and then itwas like awhite knight rode inwhen theElks opened up a supply distribution site at the old library,whichwas just across the street fromcity hall.” to assist storm victims. She reached out to Benton City Mayor Rita Dotson, who was ready and willing to lend a helping hand. Dotson, along with three others – Calvert City Mayor Gene Colburn, Hardin Mayor Randall Scott, and Commonwealth Attorney Dennis Foust, all serve on the board of the Marshall County Non-Profit Foundation, with Foust serving as board chair. The non-profit account was created about a decade ago by former Marshall County Attorney Jeff Edwards to provide a non-profit option for fundraising and charitable efforts in the community. The night of December 10, 2022, Dotson recalls getting in her vehicle and driving the roads after the storm had passed. “Governor Beshear was calling and texting me that evening asking how we were and what he could do to help but it was so dark I couldn’t see much – all I knew to tell him was that it was bad.” As daylight broke and damage assessments began, Dotson recalls the feeling of helplessness begin to set in. “We knew Mayfield was hit really hard, but we didn’t realize at first how bad ours was because it was not as concentrated.” She said as the text messages, phone calls, and emails began to pour in, the overwhelming feelings of not being able to offer friends and neighbors the kind of help they needed were immense. “There was nothing immediate I could do other than trying to find resources for them,” she says with a heavy sigh. “I would ask if they needed a place to stay or if they needed food, but I “I was getting calls from all over the county from people asking for help, asking where they could go. I remember one day I just stood there and cried. I was so overwhelmed and just didn’t know how I could help everyone, and then it was like a white knight rode in when the Elks opened up a supply distribution site at the old library, which was just across the street from city hall.” Dotson said the burden of not being able to help anyone quickly began to lift. “I could send them right across the street and they could get everything they needed and then, of course, the next week the hotline was opened and that was another tremendous burden lifted off of my shoulders, because I could steer people toward additional resources.” Knowing that supplies were helpful initially, Dotson said she was keenly aware that the next immediate need coming would be for financial assistance. Fortunately, Foust and Colburn had worked with supply distribution volunteers the day after the storms hit to create a new arm of their non-profit foundation account designated specifically for Marshall County storm victims. Within hours, the fund was set up to accept online donations through a Venmo account. It was the first Marshall County storm victim donation account to be up and running with an online donation option and the first to have an online distribution application process for victims. Donations began rolling in immediately and applications were made available online and at various locations around the county. 66 MARCH 2022 | PROMOTING EVENTS THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE | INTHEVUE.COM
