Coffee Trailer Fuels Nebraska Tornado Recovery Volunteers

Just two days after a tornado ripped through St. Libory, Nebraska on May 17, volunteers from as far as South Dakota and Oklahoma were already on the ground clearing debris and rebuilding hope.

Among them was Jocelyn Helgoth, owner of Helgoth's Coffee, who rolled her mobile coffee trailer to the disaster site to keep volunteers and survivors warm and fed. She arrived on May 18 with hot coffee and donated food, accepting only free-will donations that she's giving entirely to one of the affected families.

"Yesterday it felt like winter here. I figured everyone was pretty chilly, so I thought, 'Why not come out with a cup of coffee,'" Helgoth said. She's the only source of food and beverages at the recovery site, serving helpers who traveled hundreds of miles to assist strangers.

Nathaniel Alberts came from South Dakota with Gideon Rescue Company, a faith-based disaster relief organization that deploys teams across the country. The group arrived on May 18 and plans to stay as long as needed, clearing debris while offering spiritual support to families who lost everything.

"We go in and help out with disaster relief, but also to bring hope and encourage the people," Alberts explained. The all-volunteer, donation-funded organization operates in disaster zones to provide search and rescue, medical aid, and cleanup assistance.

Sunny's Take

Katie Arndt's story captures why this recovery effort feels so special. Three years ago, her St. Paul home burned down, leaving her and her 11-year-old child to rebuild their lives. Now she's spending her days picking up debris at Christina Parden's destroyed home—another single mom facing the unimaginable.

"I understand the chaos," Arndt said simply. She plans to keep volunteering "until everybody else disappears," determined to give other families the support she once needed.

The irony wasn't lost on Parden, who arrived at her destroyed property on May 19 to find Arndt already working. Two single mothers, both understanding loss, working side by side to create something hopeful from the wreckage.

The experience has changed perspectives too. Helgoth and her husband, who sheltered in his parents' basement with their three young daughters during the tornado, are now installing a storm shelter at their home.

By May 19, volunteers were streaming in from North Dakota to join the recovery effort, transforming a site of destruction into a hub of community resilience where coffee flows freely and strangers become neighbors.