Sturdy Desk Sheltered Woman from Ravaging Tornado

By Craig Pinley

HOUSTON, TX (October 13, 2003) - She dove for cover under a desk as a tornado ravaged the sanctuary of Faith Community Evangelical Church last Thursday, demolishing two nearby mobile buildings in the process. Grace McCullough is one fortunate individual.

The administrative assistant at the church, McCullough was the only person inside the main building when the tornado struck. Although 10 glass windows shattered, the worship center was still intact, said McCullough during a telephone interview Monday. However, insurance representatives asked that the congregation not use the building for Sunday morning worship - Faith Community worshiped at a local elementary school instead. The mobile buildings were destroyed (see accompanying photo).

Thursday was just another routine day for McCullough. As she prepared to go to work, she knew forecasters were calling for an 80 percent chance of rain. However, she had no idea her morning would soon turn into a frightful experience. "I didn't see the big black cloud (the tornado came out of) that others had seen," McCullough recalled. "It was just overcast."

McCullough drove the 15 miles from her home in Katy to northwest Houston and was in the church office at 9 a.m. Things seemed normal for a while, but a look outside the full-length glass wall by her desk an hour later provided a different perspective.

"The way my desk is, I'm looking out the windows on the south side of the building," she said in describing how the tornado hit the church. "I could see it was windy and I heard the wind getting stronger. I could see trees about 200 feet away and those trees started bending over and I said to myself, 'Wow, this wind is getting stronger.' I looked up to see if there was a darker cloud and there wasn't one. But (later) I could see a dust devil (a funnel cloud) and it was white and coming toward me. It knocked down a fence and once it got in front of the fence I dove under my desk and it just hit the building."

The tornado that damaged Faith Community was one of several twisters in the region. Another tornado hit a local school earlier that morning and caused extensive physical damage. After the tornado went through the Faith Community building there was debris everywhere. People assessing the damage a day later discovered a large piece of glass that had imbedded itself in the desk under which McCullough had sought safety. A large window blind had covered the desk when the tornado broke the windows. McCullough believes the window blind prevented her from being injured, although the sturdy desk was certainly helpful as well.

"As soon as I realized it was over, I crawled out of my desk and ran out the door," McCullough said. "I ran . . . into the parking lot and I saw that my car had been messed up. I looked in my purse and looked for my mobile phone and it was back in the church. It was still on my desk, so I called (pastor) Paul Meador. Right after I called Paul I called my husband and asked him to come and get me. He doesn't work too close to church, so I had time to collect myself."

A parishioner had been driving by Faith Community and saw that the building had been hit. She stopped by the church to check on McCullough after discovering that she had been working at church that morning. McCullough was grateful not only for that woman's comfort, but also the support provided by many others who have called to express their thoughts and prayers. She said she was showered with love on a day that dropped 4.75 inches of rain on Katy and two to three inches on various parts of Houston.

On Friday, McCullough came to work via alternative transportation because her car's back window and a side window were broken. McCullough (who attends another area church) attended worship ser vice on Sunday and while she didn't tell many others in her congregation about the incident, McCullough offered an extra prayer of thanks for God's providence.

"I feel very fortunate, "she said.

Editor's note: to read the original news story, visit Tornado Damages Houston Church

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