28 March 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – As President Joe Biden announced Federal disaster assistance to Mississippi after the storm and tornadoes, comfort food is already being delivered right now to the area.
“We call it the healing power of BBQ,” says Stan Hays, CEO and co-founder of Operation BBQ Relief based out of Missouri and Kansas. “We’re there to help the community.”
And Operation BBQ is offering free meals to anyone.
As of Monday, the group was handing out the free food.
“And just make it a little bit better day for them,” said Hays. “They’re generally going through one of the worst times of their life.”
Operation BBQ Relief brings its own mobile power with a small army of volunteers and goes into devastated areas. And they are not alone.
Some groups from Sedgwick County have gone into disaster areas out of state to help, and they could be called on again.
“They’re going through hard times,” said Sedgwick County emergency manager Julie Stimson. “They’re going through a lot of challenges. You know, the areas that got hit the hardest didn’t have a lot of resources readily available to them, so they’re having to rely on a lot of outside assistance.”
Stimson says Sedgwick County is no stranger to storm and tornado damage. She explains some areas of the county and Andover are still cleaning up after last year with the tornado.
“It’s coordination of people. It’s maintaining situational awareness of getting factual information as quickly as possible,” said Stimson. “To help align the right resources to be in the right place at the right time. That’s a challenge, but that’s also the most rewarding part of the job.”
While the county has yet to get the call to send resources, volunteer groups like Operation BBQ Relief are on the ground in the hard-hit areas.
“There’s not enough thank yous to people who donate and the companies that help sponsor,” said Hays. “It’s heartfelt. Something they feel. People are doing this for the right reasons. We have a lot of volunteers.”