The National guards motto is always ready, always there --in Oklahoma a group of Army National Guardsman came to the aid of a family. The military prides itself in taking care of families of deployed servic emembers, whether it’s mowing the lawn, fixing a leaky faucet, looking after the children so mom or dad can have some well-deserved time off, or whatever the case might be. And adding to the list - coming to the aid of a deployed spouse in the wake of a tornado.

Sgt. Jonathan Manning, who is serving a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan with the Oklahoma Army National Guard, recently found himself in a hopeless situation when the duplex his wife, Victoria, rented just three weeks ago was damaged by the powerful May 20 twister that destroyed hundreds of homes and business, causing an estimated $2 billion in damage and claiming 24 lives, including 10 children.

But thanks to several members of Manning’s parent Transportation Company, several friends and other Guard members, Victoria is in good hands. She also has a better understanding of what the Guard family is all about.

A team of about 25 to 30 volunteers met up on the Saturday morning to help Victoria and other soldiers pick up the pieces after the powerful tornado rolled through the Moore area. For the dozen or so volunteers who showed up to help Victoria, their mission of loading up all of her belongings.

Fortunately, the Manning home received minor damage compared to the other homes in her neighborhood and especially those located just a block north, where the tornado demolished everything in its path including two Elementary Schools.

Victoria is an eighth-grade English teacher at Santa Fe South Middle School, located just a few miles from where most of the destruction occurred. She said when the tornado was approaching, she was actually watching the live news feed on her phone while she and her fellow teachers were trying to make sure all their kids were safe.

About 25-30 volunteers pitched in to help with the cleanup, including one member from the company’s Family Readiness Group, her brother, and a former Minnesota Guardsman and Afghanistan war vet, who drove all the way to Oklahoma with a truck full of supplies.