100 Veterans Clear Storm Damage for 45 Ohio Families

When a massive tree branch crashed into Anisa Ahmad's community garden during a severe storm, she thought the cleanup might take her a year or more. Then Team Rubicon's veteran volunteers showed up at her Columbus door.

The organization deployed about 100 volunteers across Ohio following recent severe weather that left communities buried in fallen trees and debris. Working alongside the city's emergency management team, they're tackling the dangerous cleanup work that many homeowners lack the skills or equipment to handle safely.

The results speak for themselves. In just days, crews helped 45 Columbus families and removed roughly 1,800 cubic feet of debris, the equivalent of 13 pickup truckloads. Best of all, every bit of it came at zero cost to residents.

Jim Herrel leads a team of 30 volunteers navigating the technical challenges of tornado damage. "Tornadoes tend to blow the trees down and knock them down. It creates kind of a precarious situation because of the twisting," he explained. The twisted wood requires careful, precise cutting that can be dangerous without proper training.

For Ahmad, the timing couldn't have been better. She had transformed her backyard into a gathering space for neighborhood children whose homes and apartments lack outdoor play areas. With a children's event scheduled for Sunday, crews prioritized clearing her garden so the kids could return safely.

Marine Corps veteran Russ Hessler, serving as Team Rubicon's planning section chief, said helping neighbors recover fits perfectly with veterans' service mindset. "These are people just like us. It could have been my backyard. It could have been my mom's backyard," he said.

The Ripple Effect

Team Rubicon's work does more than clear debris. It prevents families from taking on dangerous tree removal themselves or facing crushing cleanup bills they might not afford.

The organization coordinates directly with Columbus's 311 request system, ensuring help reaches those who need it most. Crews tackle precarious situations involving twisted, tornado damaged trees that require specialized knowledge to remove safely.

For the veterans themselves, the mission offers something equally valuable. "For us to be able to continue that service, it's just part of our DNA," Hessler said. "It's just in us and we want to serve."

Ahmad watched the storm damage her garden from inside her home, grateful the falling branch missed her house. Now, thanks to volunteers who showed up ready to help, children will play there again this Sunday.

When disaster strikes, these veterans prove that the instinct to serve never fades.