Chris Thick and Jackie Jordan are heroes. At first they tried to outrun the storm about to strike Fairdale April 9 with their two children
in the car, but decided to turn around when the top of a house blew across the road.
They returned home to seek refuge and brought a handful of dazed neighbors inside with them. With the family safe for the moment when the fierce winds passed, Chris joined others in the search and rescue for other neighbors who needed help and were injured.
The couple has two sons Oliver, 2, and Ryder, 1. The boys are exactly one year apart and share the same birthday – April 10; the day after the tornado hit. So there wasn’t much of a celebration for them this year.
Governor Bruce Rauner visited Chris and Jackie and their boys at their home on April 17. “It’s been a privilege for me just to come and offer condolences and emotional support and financial support, in the future, to the families here, as we’ve walked through the community,” Rauner said.
Chris and Jackie are also grateful to Red Cross volunteer Charlie Sharpe from nearby Sycamore. The couple first met Charlie on White Street when the Red Cross was handing out supplies. They’ve run into Charlie several more times.
Charlie was also Chris and Jackie’s ambassador at the tornado survivor center at First Lutheran Church, helping them navigate the paperwork and casework process.
The couple said Charlie and the Red Cross are the one thing that’s been constant through this entire disaster. “We’ve had more help than we ever thought possible,” said Jackie. “It’s just amazing there’s been a lot of help for just this little town.”
Story and Photos by:
Patricia Kemp, Communications Manager, American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois