“I’m just trying to get home … I’m showing you my hands … I am on the ground.” These phrases Tyre Nichols of Memphis spoke Jan. 7, 2023, were among the last words the young Black man spoke before dying a few days later after a brutal beating at the hands of police.
In recent weeks, Father Bob Damron has spent his time driving down winding eastern Kentucky roads, stopping by anyone he sees cleaning up mud and flood debris to offer both spiritual and physical support — a shoulder to cry on and a shovel to help dig.
Throughout Jackson, Hazard, and other eastern Kentucky communities, there are countless stories of unbelievable loss and shock but also hope that day-by-day things will get better and that eventually, they’ll rebuild — whether in the same location or elsewhere.
Catholics make up less than 1% of the population in Eastern Kentucky, but local churches are stepping up in a big way to help victims of the devastating floods that hit the region on July 27.
