The Barron Cluster of St. Peter, Cameron; St. Boniface, Chetek; Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Strickland; and St. Joseph, Barron, finalized the distribution of funds collected in support of the tornado disaster relief.
A total of $70,492 was donated towards relief efforts following the devastating tornado that hit Barron County in May 2017. Across the Diocese of Superior, collections raised $56,697. The Barron cluster additionally collected $13,795, which included donations from Knights of Columbus organizations and their auxiliaries.
Patty Gerber, parish director, along with several parish representatives, determined final distributions of the funds.
Sixty thousand dollars was given to the Red Cedar Church/Foster Friess matching grant campaign. This money was doubled by Foster Friess to a total of $120,000. Red Cedar Church, Rice Lake, is administering the application, review and distribution of these funds to those needing assistance in rebuilding their homes.
An additional $3,000 was donated to the Barron County Emergency Relief Team, who assisted following the disaster. They will be utilizing the funds to extend their assistance, which previously was limited to a few towns and cities, to cover all of Barron County.
Parishioners of the Barron cluster will receive ongoing support with a distribution of $2,500, and the remaining $4,990 will be applied to a revitalization project this spring, hosted by the cluster. The revitalization project will consist of a continuation of support in cleanup and small repairs, as well as a gifting and planting of flowering crab trees to anyone with properties affected by the disaster.
