Hello Haruna,

A few hours after the tornadoes ripped through western Massachusetts, I almost couldn’t believe what I was seeing with my own two eyes in front of me: homes ripped apart, schools and businesses so badly damaged they would be condemned just days later, and, worst of all, Mayor Gibson and Police Chief Burke of West Springfield describing to me the injuries and loss of life, including a mother, Angelica Guerrero, who was killed protecting her daughter. It shook all of us to our core.  

When I walked into a shelter around midnight that night, people were looking at cellphone pictures of the wreckage where their homes had stood just hours before, and many were trying to explain to their young children how something like this could happen. I arrived at Union Street in West Springfield hours after the tornado to find it completely destroyed, buildings demolished and houses literally tossed on top of other buildings. 

But I was also struck by how quickly everyone was swinging into action to help neighbors and strangers with whom we all now share an unbreakable bond. At a church on Main Street in Monson, there’s a location where people can drop off supplies – food, diapers, clothing – and the pile of donated items is growing all the time. On the morning after the tornado, I visited the statewide command center for the response, and I saw an amazing sight, one I’ll always remember: a line of emergency vehicles from nearly every town and city in the state, a line stretching over a mile, all volunteering to help, proof of the state’s commitment to pull together for each other.

And I’ve also been warmed to hear so many people ask: “what can we do to help – to rebuild?”

The answer is, there’s something for each of us to do – and today I’m asking you – no matter where you live – to please contribute to the Red Cross of Central and Western Massachusetts. You can choose any of the four areas the Red Cross serves in the region; they all need your help.

They are on the ground now – just as they were moments after the tornadoes – helping people find shelter, clothing, helping with treatment of people who were injured – doing anything needed to help people rebuild. Your donation will help them do this vital work. So please give right now.

It’s hard to put into words what I saw on the ground.  The Munger Hill Elementary School was almost completely destroyed. I walked through Monson, and saw the church – founded in 1762– with its beautiful steeple toppled to the ground.

We have a long way to go – but we will rebuild – and we will come back stronger. I’ll be back again and again, but even while all of us in Massachusetts are working with state and federal officials to get relief delivered right away, I hope you’ll help me send a message back home that all of us – all the millions of folks on this email list from around the country – are pulling together.

Thanks so much,

John Kerry