Andover Tornado – Kirk of the Plains

Making Disciples who Worship, Walk & Witness for the Glory of God!

Andover Tornado Updates

Thank you all for your prayers & concerns for us in the aftermath of the tornado that hit the Andover community on April 29, 2022. In order to help facilitate communication with so many that want to help, we have set up this page as a clearing house for information and to make needs known.

While we are blessed to avoid damage at our home or our church, others in the community are facing immense losses today. Please pray with us for those now faced with sorting through the rubble, and praise God with us that there have been no fatalities reported.

We are also overwhelmed by so many who have asked how they might contribute financially to help with the clean up efforts. If you would like to donate funds you can do so either by check or online:

Mail checks to:

Kirk of the Plains

PO Box 483

Andover, KS 67002

in check memo: mercy fund

Or online at

https://my.gobluefire.com/app/giving/kotp (under the “fund” drop down menu option, select “mercy fund”).

Thank you so much for your support!

May 6, 2022 10:39 AM

Thank you all for your prayers for our city! We are now 1 week out from the tornado, and our community is beginning to get beyond the shock and urgent needs in order to move on with long term recovery. This is actually the 2nd major tornado to hit our city in it’s history. In 1991 an F5 caused major devastation and 17 people died. For some, last weekend brought up old wounds. We have even heard reports of those who suffered losses in both of these historic storms.

We thank God that in the past week we have been able to provide hundreds of snacks and water bottles for volunteers through several venues, we were privileged to open up our church space for 3 days and provide people to serve “to go” meals as the Andover Police Department used us as a hosting center for meal delivery and service to our city workers, emergency personnel and more. We also had an opportunity for some good conversations with those on the frontline. We are so grateful for the churches & individuals that came alongside us and helped us in this endeavor!

Today we shift gears, and have assembled a team to assist in debris clean up with two homes in the area. We know many have asked how they might help, and we hope to have more information before long on ways that other churches or individuals can assist, but we also know that this is a marathon and we will have opportunities for weeks and months to come. Thank you for your prayers! They are so incredibly important during this time! Please pray for open doors for service, for wisdom in knowing what to take on, and for the churches in our community to clearly and compassionately communicate the love of Christ to our community in word and deed!

May 3, 2022 2:15 PM

If you are in the Andover area and have been affected by the tornado, or are working with relief efforts, volunteering your service or are one of our fine emergency personnel, please feel free to stop by our church at 127 W Central Ave, suite 1050, and pick up some snacks and water, or grab a cup of coffee and take a little break inside. We have bags ready to go, and you can grab one for your self or take a bunch back for your crew.

We will be open 9am – 7pm Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of this week, and will post future times as we know more!

(we are located in the Andover Square Shopping Center behind the McDonalds)

May 2, 2022 4:27 PM

Wow! Thanks to all who came today!!! In just over an hour the church was transformed and is ready to serve 150-200 people for 3 meals tomorrow! So blessed to be a part of this body, always ready to serve!!!!

May 2, 2022 10:53 AM

We have offered to make our facilities available to the City of Andover and are waiting to hear back from them on how we can be of use.

In the meantime, we have been able to connect with some families that need help with clean up. They have asked if we could come on Saturday (7th) at 1:00 pm, so if you are available please let Pastor Rick know. If you have one, we could really use trailers to haul away debris on Saturday. Thank You!

May 1, 2022 6:55 PM

All those in the Andover & surrounding areas, keep an eye on the weather for tomorrow. The National Weather Service of Wichita put out the following:

Stay safe!

May 1, 2022 6:05 PM

As we stated earlier, we have some contacts that will be putting us in contact with people in need and ways that we can help them. We should be hearing back from them no later than tomorrow on how we as a church can help. However in addition to our contacts the City of Andover posted the following ways that people could begin to help those in need:

ALL INTERESTED VOLUNTEERS!

We know you have been asking and we are so grateful for all of you. We are not quite ready for spontaneous volunteers to come in and help. We are currently working with victims to assess the needs and get work assignments prepared today.

Starting tomorrow, May 2, 10 a.m. -1 p.m., those interested in volunteering can stop by the United Methodist Church in Andover (1429 N. Andover Road) to beat the lines and sign up and register for Tuesday’s work.

Our hope is to start volunteers at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, May 3 to avoid upcoming severe weather.

Again, thank you for all of your willingness to help out our community!

May 1, 2022 5:50 PM

A number of updates coming in:

Monday, May 2: Central Park will be closed to the public with the exception of visiting City Hall or the Andover Public Library during their normal business hours.

All city programs scheduled to occur at the Andover Community Center are cancelled until further notice. Starting at 1 p.m. today, the Community Center will be serving as the Residential Disaster Assistance location for those affected by the Andover tornado.

United Way of the Plains will be available to assist those residents who have had a potential financial loss. There will be resources available that residents might need such as water, snacks, supplies, and the list goes on. Residents can also stop by the Andover Community Center and let them know what help they might need from volunteers.

April 29, 2022 8:30 PM

A huge, “Thank You!” to our sister church Evangel PCA for surprising us with a generous supply of food & water to pass out this week during the clean up process.

April 30, 2022 5:43 PM

The City of Andover asks people to please avoid Central Park. It will be closed to the public until further notice. They truly appreciate everyone’s cooperation!

April 30, 2022 12:50 PM

Due to the diligent efforts of emergency personnel roads are being opened for people to get around Andover; which means we will be able to have Sunday School & worship tomorrow! We will be collecting donations of bottled water & sealed snacks tomorrow to distribute in the days ahead as we hear of additional needs.

packs of crackers
chips
trail mix
breakfast bars
rice krispie treats
protein bars
water bottles
granola bars
any item prepackaged and able to be handed out without prep or refrigeration needed.

We continue to ask if you know of anyone in need (at work, through your other networks, etc) please let Pastor Rick know.

April 30, 2022 10:50 AM

Praise God everyone at Kirk of the Plains is safe and doing well. We are still waiting for police to assess the damage and let us know how we can help as a church. Currently no one is allowed into Andover so emergency personnel can determine what needs to be done. Pastor Rick has reached out to Pastor James Gillespie of Andover Baptist Church (which is the closest church to the damage) to see how we can assist them. Andover Baptist Church is opening their facilities as a place where people can come to get meals, so we are able to partner with them in providing water, chips & other supplies for people in need.