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One of those lives was that of Kathryn Martin. Kathryn lost her two-year-old son CJ in the disaster. CJ was having a slumber party at his great-grandmother’s house. His grandmother also stayed for the sleepover. The three of them lost their lives when the tornado destroyed one-third of their neighborhood. In all, the F3 tornado killed 25 people making it one of the deadliest tornados in Indiana history.
Out of the ruins came an idea from CJ’s mother Kathryn Martin along with her husband Jeff and some input from Jeff Parness after the 2003 San Diego wildfires. They wanted to create a safe-haven for child victims of natural disasters. The safe-haven would be a distraction to the kids while their parents searched through debris, filled out forms or just needed a moment to themselves. The bus would be loaded with games, toys, coloring books and crayons. It would be staffed by trained people to help the children deal with the disaster.
SWAT Pest Management recently joined in the efforts to help CJ’s Bus become a reality. Tim and Stacey Runyon, owners of SWAT Pest Management made a donation to the CJ’s Bus Foundation which is the organization raising the funds to build the bus to operate the bus for the next few years. “This is something that happened so close to home and affected the lives of our neighbors and our employees that you just have to be a part of it to make sure that it succeeds,” said Tim Runyon.
If you would like to make a donation to The CJ’s Bus Foundation contact:
Kathryn Martin
The CJ's Bus Foundation
1864 Hawthorne Avenue
Evansville, Indiana 47714
812-477-2599
Kathryn@CJsBus.org