Stonington, IL (WAND) – In June, an EF-1 tornado hit Blue Mound, peeled the roof off Meridian Elementary School, exposing classrooms to the elements and allowing rainwater to flood the building. The district coordinated a plan to move students into the former Stonington Elementary School.

Principal Sarah Major said contractors and school staff spent the summer prepping the building for teachers and students to return.

“We did cleaning from top to bottom, paint on the walls, cover laminate flooring, carpet tiles in the classrooms, put new flooring in the cafeteria,” Major said. “We’re putting in a new kitchen … making sure that the plumbing worked and the electrical and getting air conditioning running. It’s been a major overhaul.”

Now, less than two weeks before the school year starts, teachers entered the building to set up their classrooms and take inventory of their items. Staff went into the old school, boxed up non-damaged items and moved them into the new space.

“It’s opening the boxes and seeing what’s in them, seeing what needs to be salvaged, or what can be salvaged even,” Major said. “There’s damage to a lot of books, decorations on the walls.” 

Volunteers organized times to come into the new school building and help the teachers set up their classrooms. For staff, there was a lot of rearranging and redecorating so students feel at home. 

Major painted a mural in a new space in the school that said: “Good Things Happen Here.” It stands as a reminder that even though students will be in the school for one year, that year will be important. 

Major said it’s also been amazing to see the community come together to help immediately after the tornado and as kids prepare to start school. 

“Seeing everybody up in Blue Mound getting together and cleaning up after that tornado and then now people reaching out to us saying ‘what do you need?'” Major said. “It’s just very humbling and knowing that people are always willing to help and serve.”