KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Two homes will be framed outside Kauffman Stadium during this summer’s All Star Game. The homes will be two of the nine Habitat for Humanity homes bound for Joplin and Tuscaloosa. Both cities were hit in 2011 by devastating tornadoes.
One of the homes will go to each community. It’s all part of a partnership between Major League Baseball, the players and State Farm Insurance. The partnership was announced on Wednesday at the K.
Baseball and its players will support nine homes. Five will be placed in Joplin and four in Tuscaloosa to help families whose homes were destroyed. In Joplin, 65 Habitat Homes are being built.
Joplin’s mayor says the homes are a big help considering that FEMA housing expires in September. Many are still in need of a permanent place to live.
“Housing is still critical. We have a lot in the works,” said Joplin Mayor, Melodee Colbert-Kean. “We have a lot of permits that have been issued not only to apartment complexes and to individual market rate housing. But we still need housing for people who have been high renters. We need to make sure we have affordable housing for them.”
Royals right fielder Jeff Francouer was part of Wednesday’s announcement. He played some tournament baseball in Joplin before being drafted and got to know the town well. Both he and his wife Katie have traveled to Joplin in the aftermath along with other Royals and their wives.
In addition to support for Habitat for Humanity, baseball and its players are donating $200,000 to Heart to Heart International to assist in tornado relief efforts. Heart to Heart is a Kansas City based humanitarian organization.
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