God's Pit Crew continues to help tornado victims, build home for injured veteran

The latest round of devastating tornados to wreak havoc across the south has drawn response from God’s Pit Crew, which is preparing to send relief supplies and other aid to communities in Georgia and Alabama hit by hurricanes Wednesday.

Between the new tornado response efforts, sending relief supplies to previously tornado-stricken communities in Virginia and North Carolina, sending volunteers to those communities to help with cleanup and starting to build a home in Danville for an injured veteran, God’s Pit Crew has been staying busy.

God’s Pit Crew recently finished clean-up efforts in Pulaski, where a pair of tornados demolished property on April 8. The group shipped in supplies, and brought in their shower truck so volunteers and residents would have a place for a hot shower. Volunteers then started helping remove debris from properties, put tarps on roofs damaged by the tornados and generally pitched in to help.

Randy Johnson, founder and executive director of God’s Pit Crew, said the group responded to the tornados that hit North Carolina about a week later.

“We had product in North Carolina within 24 hours,” Johnson said. “So far, eight tractor trailers have taken 300,000 pounds of relief supplies to North Carolina.”

A chain saw crew and roofing crew headed to North Carolina earlier this week to lend the same aid they gave residents of Pulaski, and Johnson said trucks will leave the Danville headquarters Friday morning to take supplies and aid to victims in Georgia and Alabama.

Johnson said he has calls out to areas in Virginia that were hit by the storms as well, and as soon as he hears where help is needed, God’s Pit Crew will do everything it can to help.

“This has been an emotional day for me,” Johnson said. “We have a lot of resources, but we don’t have enough to help everybody. I know we’re doing a lot, but I want to be everywhere.”

Johnson said he hopes to be able to expand what the group can do in the future, but “I hate to say it, but it all takes money.”

Johnson said both supplies and financial resources have been seriously depleted by recent aid efforts, and donations of both supplies and cash to buy fuel for the trailers is needed. The group will try to set up some local collection sites for supplies, but for now supplies can be dropped off at the warehouse at 2499 N. Main St.

Honoring an injured soldier

In addition to tornado relief efforts, “Operation Homefront” — God’s Pit Crew’s program to build a new house for an injured Iraq veteran — continues.

On Tuesday, Johnson was at the site on Still Street, where a home destroyed by fire — and the property donated to God’s Pit Crew — has been taken down and the property graded for a new three-bedroom, two-bath home for Sgt. David Phillippe, one of the first U.S. soldiers to arrive in Iraq in 2003, and one of the first injured.

Phillippe served two more tours, in Kosovo and Iraq, where he aggravated that injury.

God’s Pit Crew had decided it wanted to provide a free, fully furnished home for an injured veteran, and Phillippe was one of four chosen by a variety of veterans’ groups and organizations to apply for the home. A panel of 12 people chose Phillippe from the applicants, Johnson said.

Johnson said many local contractors, companies and individuals have helped with the project so far.

“Sellers Brothers Construction sent a guy out to tear down the old house; First Piedmont worked with us on dumpsters; Wendy Bryant, of Drafting by Design, came up with the plan — so many people have donated services,” Johnson said.

The home will be extremely energy-efficient, Johnson said, because Jimmy Farlow, of SIPs of America, is bringing in the insulated panels to build the house.

Johnson met Richard Holbrook, of Holbrook Enterprises, at the site to measure out where the footers will go. Holbrook will oversee the pouring of the concrete and get the framing started.

“He’ll be keeping the project on track — and doing a ton of work,” Johnson said.

If all goes on schedule, the Phillippe family — David, his pregnant wife and their 6-year-old son — will get the keys to the house on July 2, Johnson said.

Johnson said all applicants for the home were worth of it, but Phillippe has impressed him since they first met.

“He told me on a couple of occasions that he would give us names of other people, soldiers in his unit, he felt deserved it more than he did,” Johnson said. “That humbleness really moved me.”

Thibodeau reports for the Danville Register & Bee.