Marshalltown Tornado Long-Term Recovery Committee, formed weeks after the storm, has several subcommittees to help with storm recovery. The spiritual, emotional and mental health subcommittee is planning to have five day camps this school year to help local children address such storm-related trauma.

“Our camps are going to focus on how they feel – fear, sadness – and we want to strongly encourage resiliency,” said day camp program coordinator Melissa Keller of Hope 4 Healing, one of several organizations partnering on the effort. “I’m planning to have five or six different stations, and there will be about 40 kids who come to each camp.”

The day camps will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Wolfe Ranch, 2932 240th St., during school inservice days. They will have a theme of “Building Resiliency After the Storm.”

The current schedule will see students from Anson Elementary take part Sept. 23, Rogers Elementary students Oct. 28, Franklin Elementary students Feb. 17, 2020, Woodbury Elementary students March 30, 2020, and an open date April 13 for participants from Marshalltown Christian School, St. Francis Catholic School, Hoglan Elementary and Fisher Elementary. A potential weather make-up day will be scheduled in May if needed.

T-R FILE PHOTO – The day camps being planned through the Marshalltown Long-Term Family Recovery subcommittee on spiritual, emotional and mental health are for children who experienced and were traumatized by last year’s tornado. This kind of damage was common in much of northern Marshalltown in the wake of the storm.

Central Iowa Art Association Board President Bob Moore presented a $2,000 donation for the program Thursday.

“This operation today came to my attention, and it seemed to be a very legitimate way to use some of the funds because it’s going to be helping kids who were directly impacted by the tornado,” Moore said.

Invited students will be able to participate in are crafting, horse grooming as well as safety training, equine therapy and a station for students to share their stories from the tornado and its aftermath with mental health experts. Those mental health counselors from Center Associates and Quakerdale Family Services will be on-hand at all the day camps to help students navigate their feelings and experiences with the storm.

No family income requirements were made for participating students, who were identified based on need for such programming by subcommittee members, including Paul Daniel of Center Associates.

Mid-Iowa Community Action (MICA) and Trinity Lutheran Church are among the many partnering organizations for the day camps. Trinity serves as the program’s fiscal agent and donation checks with “tornado recovery” in the memo line can be made out to the church to help fund day camp programming.

Keller said the day camps and activities will not be religious in nature. The program is still in need of volunteers and Keller said those looking to help can contact her at 1-855-584-4673 ext. 701.

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Contact Adam Sodders at

641-753-6611 or

asodders@timesrepublican.com