PORTLAND, Mich. — St. Patrick Catholic School is raising $250,000 to rebuild an athletic facility five months after an EF-1 tornado ripped through the city.
A pile of rubble was all that was left of their athletic facility when the tornado came through on June 22, 2015. Now the church is asking for help from people across West Michigan as they continue to fix things up for their students and community.
Father Larry King of St. Patrick Church said they’re now storing their football equipment in the baseball dugout.
“Basically we need to rebuild and we had a lot of damage on this field,” said Father King.
King said they have an insurance policy for the building but they ended up with a shortfall. The estimated cost is $370,000 and doesn’t cover everything they lost, according to Father King.
The church hopes to raise $215,000 dollars for the new facility which will have handicap accessible bathrooms, a food prep area, and a storage unit.
To help raise the money they’ve launched a website where people can donate. They’re hoping the generosity of West Michigan will cover the costs not paid for by insurance.
If you would like to donate, click this link.
