The Long Term Recovery Committee, a coalition of volunteer and nonprofit organizations working to help Marion and Franklin counties recover from the April 27 tornadoes, has raised more than $1 million to put people back into their homes.

But it’s not enough.

Donna Fisher, who works with Faith Church in Florence and also serves as chairwoman of the committee, said the combined total of housing needs for both counties initially totaled more than $3.5 million.

With a grant of $250,000 for Franklin County and $200,000 for Marion County through the Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund, and after funds have been dispersed from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, insurance companies, numerous churches and community foundations, housing needs for both counties total nearly $1 million.

That total also includes a recent grant of nearly $163,000 the committee received through the Central Alabama United Way from Lilly Endowment Inc.

“We’re encouraging people to do different types of fundraising,” Fisher said. “Anybody can sit in (on a meeting) if they have funds they want to donate.”

On the other hand, she said, the committee is more than happy to accept anonymous donations.

Additionally, Long Term Recovery is in need of people who are skilled electricians and construction workers and are willing to volunteer, Fisher said.

According to Alabama Emergency Management Agency statistics, 1,336 homes in Franklin and Marion counties combined were affected, if not destroyed, by the tornadoes.

Through the Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund, families who are still in need of housing can receive up to $12,500, Fisher said, though some could receive less.

“We started out working with 1,925 families (who needed housing),” she said. “We’re still working with approximately 800. Of those 800, 95 of them may qualify for the (governor’s relief) grant.”

Fisher said people still come to the Housing Resource Center daily, where members of the Long Term Recovery Committee, including legal services and counselors, have offices.

“Not everybody (who needs help) has registered with Long Term Recovery,” she said. “And we’re already looking at the one-year anniversary of the tornado.

“We’re planning a one-year anniversary day of remembrance. Hopefully we can focus on some fundraisers around that time.”

Many of the Long Term Recovery Committee’s members are paid through grants, and the committee was in danger of folding when its initial grant ran out Dec. 31.

Fisher said since then, case manager grants, which allow members of the committee to work one on one with families in need, have been obtained to make sure people can continue to get critical housing assistance.

She pointed out that Church World Services has a “Rule of 10s” it uses to determine how long it will take to recover from a disaster.

By multiplying the total number of days it initially took to rescue people after a disaster by 10, then multiplying that total by 10, one gets an estimate of the number of days it will take for full recovery.

For Franklin County, which had six days of initial rescue, recovery will take 600 days. In Marion County, where initial rescue lasted 10 days, recovery should take 1,000 days, according to Church World Services.

“That just gives you an idea of what we’re looking at here,” Fisher said.

Hannah Mask can be reached at 256-740-5728 or hannah.mask@TimesDaily.com.