BELLEVILLE, Ill. — Belleville nonprofit MindsEye needs help after Saturday evening's storms swept through the area. The building's radio tower was knocked over and fell onto the building, leaving it unsafe for volunteers and staff to work inside.
"Our broadcast assistant called me and said 'Hey, there is a tower on the roof,'" President and CEO Jason Frazier said.
He said seeing the damage in person was surreal.
"That tower probably fell and hit that tree on the side first, and then landed on the roof later, so it probably softened the impact a little bit," he said.
But MindsEye holds a bigger story than the damage outside. Its volunteers translate visuals through audio for people who are blind or have low vision.
"I don't know if we're out of the woods yet," Frazier said. "I don't think we ever imagined to see it like this."
Volunteers record themselves reading news, advertisements, sporting events and more. He said they use a number of different platforms to stream their content, which is why they need more volunteers to help by reading content remotely.
"We're going to depend on our volunteers now more than ever, the ones we do have," he said. "And then hopefully we can get a new crop with us to read some things remotely.”
Frazier said the damage to the roof is still being surveyed, but for now they're expecting to keep the building closed for the next few weeks. They're still on air right now, though.
He said MindsEye needs the same kind of help it gives others.
"We're hoping people have that same spirit and help us through that tough time right now," he said.
To ask about volunteering, you can call or email the nonprofit, which are on its Facebook page.
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