Helping Families Rebuild After Kentucky’s Storms and Floods
Following two devastating disasters in Kentucky, our partnership with Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) helped bring stability and hope to families facing immense loss. After a violent, long-tracked tornado tore through western Kentucky in December 2021 and historic flooding inundated eastern Kentucky in July of 2022, we partnered to provide $750,000 in long-term recovery support, ensuring families could rebuild long after the emergency response ended.
In western Kentucky, the 2021 tornado caused catastrophic damage across 23 FEMA-declared counties. As rebuilding began, many families encountered unexpected costs when septic systems, previously grandfathered under older codes, were required to meet current standards—expenses often not covered by insurance. Undocumented immigrant families were especially affected, with limited access to additional assistance. Through LDR, we helped fund new, code-compliant septic systems for 25 families, allowing them to safely return home and continue rebuilding.
Just months later, historic flooding struck eastern Kentucky, claiming 39 lives and damaging nearly 3,300 homes across 13 counties. In a region where poverty rates reach as high as 40 percent, hundreds of families lacked the resources to recover. Once again, our partnership with LDR focused on unmet needs, providing critical funding for construction materials and labor to help families repair or rebuild safe, livable homes.
This work was made possible through the leadership of ELCA pastors and lay leaders across Kentucky and Indiana. Their local knowledge and trusted relationships helped ensure resources were carefully stewarded and directed to households with the greatest need—turning generosity into tangible, life-restoring impact for communities on the long road to recovery.
Read Jody's story here:
A Home Restored: From Flooded Fear to Peace of Mind
For the second time in four years, a Kentucky homeowner watched her life get waterlogged.
On February 16, 2025, heavy rainfall swept across Eastern Kentucky, causing widespread and record flooding in multiple counties. For Jody, it was a devastating repeat of a disaster she had already endured.
She felt helpless as water slowly crept across her yard toward her home. She knew that if it reached her house, she had no resources or recourse.
The water entered through the basement and quickly rose to the first floor. She lost everything, including her appliances, her furniture, her documents, and her peace.
For someone who had always valued independence, raising grandchildren and managing daily life on her own, the flood stripped away even the most basic abilities. Cooking, doing laundry, and maintaining a safe and clean environment became impossible without relying on others.
This is where your support makes a difference. The IN-KY Synod Disaster Response team routinely partners with trusted local organizations to respond when disaster strikes communities where our congregations live and serve. Your gifts strengthen these partnerships and make long-term recovery possible, not just short-term relief.
In Owsley County, that partner is Partnership Housing, Inc., an organization committed to creating safe and affordable housing in a region where it is often difficult to build and sustain it. After helping Jody recover from earlier flooding, they recognized that repairing her home again would not provide lasting safety. The risk and fear would remain.
Together, Partnership Housing and the IN-KY Synod used grant funding to make a new path possible. Instead of rebuilding in the same flood-prone location, they helped Jody move into a newly constructed home outside the floodplain, designed to be safe, secure, and energy efficient.
This effort required multiple partners. Donations, grants, and a low-interest loan covered much of the cost, but a critical funding gap remained. Your support helped close that gap and made it possible for Jody to move into a home where she no longer has to fear the next storm.
For the first time in years, she can sit on her porch and listen to the rain without panic. Cooking a meal, doing laundry, and caring for her grandchildren have once again become simple joys. “The security and independence I feel now is a huge burden off my shoulders,” she said.
The experience has changed her perspective on life. “These disasters have made me appreciate every moment, every small joy, and the ability to provide a safe home for my family,” she reflected.
To those who made this transformation possible, she offers her heartfelt thanks: “The gratitude I feel is immeasurable. Knowing I can live the rest of my days without fearing another flood, and that this home will be here for generations, is priceless. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
