Nearly a year after a tornado tore through North St. Louis, many residents are still struggling to repair homes, navigate insurance claims and recover from the emotional toll of the disaster.
Community leaders say those ongoing needs are one reason seven grassroots organizations involved in recovery efforts will receive a combined $70,000 through the St. Louis Regional Racial Healing + Justice Fund.
The one-time crisis-response grants are intended to support organizations providing direct aid, mental health services, housing support, food access and community healing in neighborhoods hardest hit by the May 16, 2025 storm.
Recipients include 314Oasis, 4theVille, Action St. Louis, Black Healers Collective, Dream Builders for Equity, Chosen For Change and St. James AME Church.
The grants were awarded by the fund’s Community Governance Board, which said many residents remain in recovery nearly a year after the tornado damaged or destroyed thousands of homes, businesses, churches and other buildings across the city.
“Nearly a year later, many are still navigating recovery, rebuilding, and stability,” said Dr. Shonda Ambers-Phillips, a member of the Community Governance Board.
For Joyce White, recovery has been far slower than she expected.
White still remembers standing in her bathroom praying as the tornado ripped through her North St. Louis neighborhood.
“I had to just stand there and call on the name of Jesus,” she said.
Her home sustained extensive damage. Although she eventually received a tarp for her roof, she said rain continued leaking inside, damaging ceilings and her grandson’s room. More than a year later, portions of the two-family flat she owns still need repairs.
“One window is 500 bucks,” White said. “That’s a lot of money for one window.”
White said she also remains frustrated by what she sees as a slow recovery process in some North St. Louis neighborhoods.
Across the street from her home, she said, a tree that crashed into a vacant house during the tornado has yet to be removed.
“I’ve been looking at it since May 16,” White said.
Property owner David Walker said he is still repairing tornado-damaged buildings more than a year later.
Walker, who owns several properties in heavily damaged neighborhoods, said he spent months dealing with debris removal and emergency repairs and has invested more than $100,000 into recovery efforts.
“A year later and I’m still fixing stuff,” he said.
Community organizations receiving grants say stories like White’s and Walker’s remain common.
Rebeccah Bennett of InPower Institute’s Black Healers Collective said her organization continues to encounter residents dealing with displacement, housing instability and emotional trauma tied to the storm.
“Displacement, despondency, despair, and depression have become the new norms for many community members,” Bennett said.
She said Black Healers Collective and its partners have organized healing events, wellness programs and crisis counseling services for residents affected by the tornado.
“The recovery process has been stunted and uneven, with most residents not getting adequate city and FEMA assistance to repair their homes, restore their lives, and rebuild their neighborhoods,” Bennett said.
Chosen For Change, founded by Michael Brown Sr. and Cal Brown, said the grant will support its work providing grief support, mentorship and crisis-response services. Since the tornado, the organization said it has helped provide hotel stays, meals, toiletries and children’s services for affected families.
Cal Brown said one lesson from the recovery effort has been the importance of collaboration among neighborhood groups, churches and volunteers.
“While the road to recovery remains long and frustrating for many, grassroots organizations, churches and volunteers continue to fill the gaps where systemic responses have fallen short,” Brown said.
The Racial Healing + Justice Fund was launched in 2020 through a partnership involving Forward Through Ferguson, Deaconess Foundation and Missouri Foundation for Health to support community-led efforts focused on racial healing and equity across the St. Louis region.
Fund leaders said the tornado-recovery grants recognize organizations that stepped in to help residents in the immediate aftermath of the storm and continue providing support as recovery enters its second year.