Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear joined local officials in Graves County Tuesday afternoon to dedicate a new home to a family that survived the 2021 tornado outbreak.
The new home, dedicated to Mayfield resident Trina Cruise and her children, is one of over 200 new homes constructed in the Graves County seat since a deadly EF-4 tornado destroyed hundreds of buildings there nearly four years ago.
Beshear said that these home dedications serve as a reminder to focus on supporting and uplifting community members during times of hardship – even as conflict and civil unrest spread across the nation.
“These home dedications are a great reminder not just to Mayfield or Kentucky, but the United States of America about what's actually important,” Beshear said. “With so much arguing over so many different things, what matters most are our families, our neighbors, of taking care of each other and of being kind to one another.”
Beshear also attended the dedication for a new home in Princeton earlier that day, given to Caldwell County resident Susan MacIntosh and her family.
The governor and his team were also joined by representatives from The Hope Initiative, a non-profit community recovery group based in Mayfield. That group has built around 55 new homes for tornado survivors in western Kentucky, including Cruise’s house.
The new house is part of the organization’s new “IronCLAD” series of buildings, which focuses on durability and resistance to harsh weather conditions. The structures also feature built-in safe rooms for residents to use during severe storms.
Mayfield Mayor Kathy O’Nan said she is grateful for all the people that contributed to the project’s completion.
“We're so grateful to the organizations who have sent their people, their time, their prayers, their money to Mayfield, Kentucky,” O’Nan said. “We would not be here without them.”
