The Reporter from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin • 1

1 pages teifEniEsl plits, stories How you can help victims recover; how to donate items Pages, Al, A2, A4, A5, A8, Bl, B6 Bid UTTO 1U Ji iiJL i i 1 Uur AW i III I mlii) I'Ulfc --r-czsf? year FOND DU LAC WISCONSIN Co I in to cleanup but rather than grass clippings or leaves, they were raking metal cans, shreds of roofing, and entire tree branches into piles. Meanwhile, cleanup crews and See Cleanup Page A5 i -V-T 5 i i ax 1 rn 91M By Samantha Bornemann Of The Reporter Staff The menacing hum of the twister that chewed and spat out half of Oakfield last week was replaced by the buzz of chainsaws and bulldozers Saturday afternoon. Residents and volunteers continued cleaning up an estimated $50 1 1 zr r- Volunteers pitch million in damage to the village. Slivers of bedposts and table legs, vacuum cleaners, children's toys, broken dishes all were cap ried out to the curb for collection. Residents engaged in activities such as raking and shoveling fs if! -a.

Brian FairbanksThe Reporter a sofa to Katie Deaver, Valerie not visible. The sofa was being Karen Koenen's home. 1 V'Auta, JULY 21, "It's hard. This is the only home they've ever known." Faith Manke, tornado victim 'Sir A I HE i why watches are issued earlier to get people in the right mind set. You should be no more than a minute away from safe shelter in case a warning is announced." He said a tornado watch was issued for the area about 3:30 p.m.

Sgt. Mike Thome of the Fond du Lac County Sheriffs Department, said warning sirens were sounded at 7:07 p.m. when the first funnel clouds were sighted by weather spotters about eight miles west of Oakfield near Ladoga. The spotters contacted the Oakfield Fire Department. The village's sirens at the firehouse and a water tower were activated.

The tornado hit Oakfield at 7:13 p.m., according to clocks that See Warning Page A2 -w-a -'t 1996 CALL 922-4600 Psychiatrist offers advice Page Bl Oakfield check flies far Page Bl Friday Canning to reopen Page A5 Down but not out Church members count their blessings By Paulette Kilmer Of The Reporter Staff The portrait of Jesus and the scriptural promise painted on a wall in the sanctuary, "Lo, I will be with you always," survive amid splintered boards and crushed bricks that once were St. Luke's Lutheran Church. "It's a message that God was and will be here with us as welgo through this pain," said Betty u-prenand, a member of the Oakfield church for over 20 years. "We are a tight community. We will get through this together." Suprenand had a ringside seat Thursday night as the funnel chewed its way through houses, churches, businesses and schools, reducing many to bulldozer fodder.

Church services The Rev. Robert Bitter will conduct services for St. Luke's Lutheran Church of Oakfield at 9 a.m. today in Winnebago Lutheran Academy, 475 E. Merrill Fond du Lac.

The Rev. Thad Rutter and his congregation will gather for services at 10:45 a.m. today at St. James Catholic Church on Main Street in Oakfield. "It's a miracle," Suprenand said.

"You see the ruin, but I know that had that storm hit just 10 minutes later, we and many of our friends would have been inside, listening to the organ and praying. We never would have heard the siren. Many of us would be dead right now." i She, her husband, John who works for the Wright Paper Box Co. and their son, Joseph, left their home in Lamartine about 7 p.m. to go to church.

Joseph was ushering. In the summer, St. Luke's offers Thursday night services. "We saw the funnel up ahead," Suprenand said. "We cried and prayed that it wouldn't get Oak-field." See Churches Page A4 Jerry and Ellen Heus of Marytown are trying to pick up the pieces of their home that was destroyed by a tornado Thursday evening.

More Marytown tornado photos Page A4. Chris Schwenck The Reporter Reporter plans Special Edition Due to high demand for The Reporter's tornado coverage, a Tornado Special Edition will be printed sometime by next weekend. The edition will include -re-prints of tornado photos and articles that appeared in Thursday's Reporter, as well as many more previously unpublished photos. See upcoming editions of The Reporter to find out when the Tornado Special Edition will publish. Bring donations to The Reporter Anyone wanting to donate items for tornado victims is invited to bring them to The Reporter starting Monday.

Items will be forwarded to the appropriate relief agencies for distribution. Here are some needed items: Non-perishable food, pet food, clothing, diapers, cleaning supplies, cleaning agents, brooms, dust pans, mops, bug spray, sun block, toiletries, personal hygiene items, bedding, blankets, and cash donations. The Reporter office hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays.

If you have larger items to donate, please call the Salvation Army at 923-8220. Call Freeline to donate items or receive help Anyone wanting to help or receive help in the wake of Thursday's tornado may use The Reporter Freeline telephone information service. You may call Freeline on your touch-tone phone anytime to leave a message. Messages will be checked and forwarded to the appropriate officials. People with items to give or loan to tornado victims, call 922-9600, then press 6014.

Tornado victims with specific needs, call 922-9600, then press 6013. 40-page Parade of Homes special section Inside Advertising Inserts: Walgreens, Little Caesars, Vulcan Waterproofing, Carpetland, Chuck Homier, Physicians Life Business A6 Classified Fl Crossword F6 Cryptoquote F6 Dixon C5 Farm B3 Landers C3 Lotteries A2 Movies Cover Story Obituaries B6 Opinion A7 Outdoor D6 Records B2 Sports Dl Travel D5 WEATHER. Today: Partly cloudy. Highs near 80. Chance of thunderstorms tonight.

Extended: Monday, chance of thunderstorms. Dry Tuesday and Wednesday with a chance of thunderstorms Thursday. Highs in the upper 70s to lower 80s. Ill In 7do -zllnn ell Brian FairbanksThe Reporter as residents try to pick up the pieces left by the tornado that roared Filbey Street in Oakfield is buzzing with activity Saturday afternoon 'through the village Thursday evening. Early warning saved lives "Ni i- -rf' 1 if A Jeff Rumbuc of Oakfield hands Rumbuc and Carol Draves, who is moved through the front window of Quick action by firefighters and volunteer spotters is being praised for giving Village of Oakfield residents six minutes warning of the approaching tornado.

The twister caused an estimated $50 million in damages, but there were only 19 injuries reported and no deaths. It's initially been classified an F3 class tornado the first of that intensity since the August 1994 twister that hit Big Flats in Adams County. Jeff Last, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Green Bay, said the six-minute lead time probably saved some lives. "Tornadoes can form anywhere from two to 30 minutes," he said. "You can't issue a warning until a tornado is actually sighted.

That's 7-i- Mary town tornado destroys buildings, but not the people Neighbors help neighbors pick up the pieces Chuck and Gloria Mauer believe the tornado initially touched down on their farm one-eighth of a mile north of Garnet off County Trunk HHH. Damage to their property includes the house being shifted from it's foundation and extensive damage to the foundation of the barn. Other major damage was done to the machine shed, garage, and the automated feeding system. Jeff Sabel, one of Mauers' employees, was in the shop when the storm hit. "Mike (Wagner) was feeding the calves outside.

He came into the shop and said it was really raining. Then the wind came. We were going to try to make it into the barn, but there was so much debris flying around. We were going to crawl under the haybine, See Marytown Page A4 By Chris Schwenck Reporter Correspondent MARYTOWN "I was in the garden and I saw the funnel forming, coming toward us, up and down. I never saw anything like it.

We were watching it. It came so fast the clouds were swirling from the north and the south. It was like the clouds were clashing. I've never seen them roll together like that. It was really scary, so we quickly went in the basement," said Suzanne Mueller of Marytown.

What Mueller did not realize at the time was that the tornado had touched down and literally destroyed several of the homes in her immediate area Thursday evening..