JOPLIN, Mo. – A patch of wildflowers planted in the weeks before the May 22 tornado that killed 161 people and left schools, police and fire stations, parks and other landmarks in the rubble, has sprung up next to the concrete slab upon which Richard and Sandra King are rebuilding their home.  A year ago, the couple emerged from a crawl space in their heavily damaged home to find their trees gone and their close-knit neighborhood flattened. The spot where the poppy, daisy and clover seeds were planted was stripped bare.  "The tornado took all the dirt off there and we figured (the flowers) were gone forever, they'd never come back," said Richard King, a retired plumbing contractor. "This spring, we were just amazed when they came up.  "The flowers were a blessing."  The EF-5 tornado scorched a 13-mile path, an average of six blocks wide, through "the heart" of Joplin, then into the city of Duquesne, ending in rural Jasper County. It was the deadliest tornado since modern record keeping began in 1950 and the seventh-deadliest in U.S. history, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  The destruction was vast and overwhelming. At least 17,000 people were directly affected when about 7,500 homes and 550 businesses were damaged or destroyed.  But as the somber one-year anniversary of the storm approaches, much progress is evident. The Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce reports that 80 percent of businesses have reopened, and the city of Joplin has issued building permits for about 65 percent of the houses and apartments.  "A lot of things are coming together," Rohr said. "We're very encouraged."  There are pockets of homes, medical buildings, parks, trees and businesses that have re-emerged on the scarred landscape.  Near the Kansas border on the west, where the tornado first touched earth, neighborhoods are close to appearing whole again. On the eastern edge of Joplin, scores of businesses with shiny new signs have cropped up.  City Manager Mark Rohr said thoughtful planning, higher building standards and strong community input has strengthened the rebuilding process.  "We're expecting to come back bigger and stronger than we were before the storm," he said. "…We have a tragedy on one hand and an opportunity on the other hand."  Like many, the Kings decided to stay and rebuild but they opted to design a smaller and more updated version of the house where they raised their children. They poured a foundation and installed a storm shelter, while some former neighbors, they say, took insurance settlements and found a new house or left town.  "We just like this place so well, we decided to stay," Richard King said. "We're building back different, it's going to be a little smaller, and I'm doing as much of it as I can."  The tornado took the dental office that Benjamin Rosenberg built in the shadow of St. John's Regional Medical Center, which is now known as Mercy Hospital. He returned to work in a week after securing temporary privileges in a different hospital, leasing room in a clinic and eventually set up a temporary office space.  Rosenberg quickly weighed his options and decided to rebuild, slightly better, in the same spot. The brick office was one of the first permanent structures to return in that area.  "The first to come back is the toughest. It takes one building on a corner and others will follow," said Rosenberg, a city councilman. "If everybody builds back a little bit better, look at what type of a city we'll have."  Rosenberg said progress has been aided by residents and business owners who developed the right attitude.  "There isn't time for a pity-me contest; let's get to building back better," he said. "God helps those who help themselves and then let's help the ones who can't help themselves."  Joplin Fire Chief Mitch Randles, a Duquesne resident, was one of the first responders, along with Rohr. He was leaving the high school graduation of his son, Kevin, when the storm hit.  Randles worked to help others and, hours later, learned his own home was gone.  "My son told me a few months back, he said, 'I went from the happiest day of my life, graduating high school, to homeless in like an hour,'" he said. "That's something that's hard to digest when your kids are telling you that."  The fire department also sustained about $4 million in damage including the destruction of two stations and a lot of equipment. With so much rebuilding to do at work, Randles opted to buy a house instead of reconstruct one on the same lot.  City, school and business leaders said that while they remember the tragic day and the note the progress made in the past 12 months, they will also celebrate how much love Joplin has received.  More than 130,000 volunteers have put sweat into the rebuilding effort and donations -- food, clothing and supplies -- have been sent from all 50 states and numerous foreign countries.  "The thing that has been the most humbling is the level of giving on the part of children," said Joplin Schools Superintendent C.J. Huff. "There have been lemonade stands, bake sales, kids just emptying piggy banks and going through their toy boxes -- giving toys knowing kids here lost their toys and books. They've given, in some cases, their most prized possessions and I think that speaks well of this next generation of kids coming up."  But Huff worries that focusing too much on all the progress, and milestones like reaching the anniversary of the first year, will gloss over all the work that remains.  "I've heard a few people say, 'Everything is back to normal, right?' And it's not," Huff said. "Granted, we've made a lot of progress but we have a long way to go."
Joplin, Mo., residents recover from last year's deadly tornado that left 161 people dead and hundreds more injured.