How Churches Mobilized To Rescue Selma After A Tornado Devastated The Historic City

Warren William “Billy” Young was just 2 years old when a violent tornado tore through his family’s home church, the historic First Baptist Church in Selma, Alabama, causing devastating damage.

It was Monday, May 1, 1978 at 7 a.m. when the tornado plowed through the sanctuary. It destroyed its huge brick walls and ripped out its stained glass windows. The tornado also decapitated the church spire, which was the tallest in the entire city at that time.

This church, one of only a handful of structures to be damaged, looked completely destroyed. However, the First Baptist faith family held firm to their beliefs. Young’s parents — his father Woodrow, a deacon and trustee, his mother Alice, president of the mission society — and other members rallied together to rebuild the city’s Oldest Black Baptist Church

They set out to restore the Gothic Revival to its original beauty, as designed by David West Benjamin (1894), an African American architect. Members gathered up bricks the tornado pitched all over the city, signed pledges, took out loans, and slowly put the church back together, using a member’s wedding photograph to reassemble the sanctuary.

They remained together in borrowed sanctuaries throughout their long recovery. “My father often said the tornado could not stop God’s work,” Young said.

Nightmares Repeated

That strong faith and determination honed in his family church helped to drive Young’s vigorous relief efforts following the tornado On Jan. 12, the tornado that decimated one-third of Selma was his hometown. High-powered tornado winds of up to 157 mph ripped through Selma. It destroyed homes, businesses and churches along with more than 1,000 trees. Miraculously, nobody was killed.

Young drove straight to his church in the hardest-hit neighborhood after the tornado hit.

“As soon as I could see our church building standing tall, I knew it had been spared to serve. I knew that First Baptist had a chance to really show God’s love to people who were hurting, and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing.”

Young brought people together to feed 800 people each day through his church. They handed out supplies — from tarps, shovels, and rakes to flashlights, food boxes, and diapers — and offered prayers and encouragement to his battered community. Young led recovery efforts not only as a church deacon but also as Selma City Council PresidentIt shows how Christians serve others. 

“My faith completely took over my actions — all those years in prayer meetings, Bible study, worship — directed me to show God’s compassion to others,” He said.

First Baptist joined churches from all over the city in opening their doors to help the community. They also met immediate needs for shelter, food, clothing, or shelter. Churches with mainline Protestant denominations — Southern Baptist, Methodist, Church of Christ, Lutheran, and African Methodist Episcopal — became compassionate, caring centers for the relief efforts needed to respond to the citywide devastation. There are many sister churches all over the world