Joplin woman getting mansion tile to replace loss in tornado

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Joplin woman who survived a deadly tornado is getting a replacement for a decorated tile from the Missouri Governor's Mansion that she lost in the storm.

The tiles had been on the roof of the Missouri Governor's Mansion in Jefferson City and were painted and sold by a preservation group to raise money. Billie Shanks' tile had a painted bluebird and was lost along with her home when the deadly tornado struck Joplin in May. Shanks had looked at the painted tile each morning in her kitchen.

The Jefferson City News Tribune reported that Shanks received a new bluebird tile plus a tile with a painting of the Governor's Mansion. The tiles are painted by Dennis Holliday, who is doing three sets of images for the Governor's Mansion roof tiles.

The May 22 tornado killed more than 160 people in the Joplin-area and destroyed an estimated 7,000 homes.

Shanks said she took shelter in a ground floor closet when the tornado hit and was helped out of the rubble.

"I do not know how long I was in there," Shanks said. "It was sudden, and total black and then I could hear people and started screaming for help."

The school district now has bought the property where her house stood to expand its campus, and a new home is being built for her elsewhere. Shanks now is living in a duplex in the nearby community of Neosho.

Others also are getting help to rebuild their homes. Gov. Jay Nixon was scheduled to be in Joplin on Sunday to tour houses that Habitat for Humanity is building in the city. Habitat for Humanity plans to construct 10 homes in a "blitz build" to start Sunday and finish Nov. 13.

Most of the houses will be built along one street in Joplin. Some lots were donated and others were bought with money from the United Way.

Corporate sponsors are paying for building costs that will be about $60,000 per house.