Easter Sunday 2020 will be one that many from around the county will remember for decades to come. It for some on a much closer front was a frightening, near death-defying, and life changing day in the Moss Community when an EF-4 tornado ripped their lives from around them. But, with resilience, things are on the mend all throughout the area, and that’s evident with a flourishing business that has rebuilt in a very short time … literally, from the ground up.
Andrew Phillips and his wife, Amber, had been running a newly successful deer processing plant and fresh meat market for around two years in Moss before the treacherous twister hit on Easter. Following the storm, their entire business was wiped away, their home gone. Life as they knew it at that time was obliterated in only a matter of seconds. All that stood on the property where “The Meat Hook” was located was a grey, cinder block storm shelter, standing tall,appearing oddly and quietly out of place, with destroyed homes reduced to rubble and flattened tree lines surrounding it in all directions. That cinder block shelter was where Andrew and Amber, with their young children, survived
“We had just bought the house about four months prior to it, and the tornado came through. I stepped out on the front porch and saw it coming across the highway. It was just a black wall coming at us, and I was thinking this is not happening,” said Andrew. “We got in the storm shelter and pulled a mattress in front of us, and 20 seconds later it hit.”
It was a big hit, but the Phillips family, just thankful to be alive following the tornado, took things in stride the days and months after that devastating evening. They regrouped, watched and helped with clean-up and rebuilding in the area, and made the most of the situation. Now, a brand new building has been built around the storm shelter where the Phillips family took refuge from the storm. And, The Meat Hook is thriving.
Andrew reminisced recently about the tornado and what seemed at the time a despondent situation he faced with his family just following the storm. But, with hard work, a once-again growing business and with a smile on his face now, he knows his family definitely survived the storm … in more ways than one.
“When I walked out and saw everything gone after the tornado, I didn’t know what to do. It was just a hopeless feeling,” he explained. “The next day (following the storm) after surveying everything I knew I had to get boots back on the ground and get things going for deer season. That’s what we did. We put boots on the ground, the community stepped up and helped, and six months later here we are.”
The Meat Hook held a grand opening earlier this month and is staying extremely busy.
“I knew the community wanted us back as quick as possible, and I was ready to get back. We tried to get it up as fast as we could,” Phillips mentioned. “We had a soft opening that went OK, but with the grand opening they blew us out, and ever since the grand opening we have been wide open. With deer season here, it will only get busier. The first week we took in over 40 (deer), and I expect a really busy season.”
The Stringer Chamber of Commerce was on hand for The Meat Hook’s grand opening, and chamber members are thrilled to see it back in business in such a short time.
“We’re excited to see The Meat Hook back in full swing so fast after such devastation in our community,” said Stringer Chamber of Commerce President Lindsey Ricketson. “What a true testament of God’s grace and faithfulness for them to rebuild so fast after losing their home and business. We wish them many years of success and will be here to support them throughout.”
Phillips, originally from the Shady Grove area, went on to explain his family has found its place in Moss and will be there. He feels through the aftermath of the storm that is where his family should be.
“This is a close knit area. I lived in Shady Grove for about seven years before this and thought that was going to be my home place. When we bought the store two years ago and moved here (Moss), we got to knowing the community. Once the tornado hit and the community really stepped up, I knew this was where we are going to be,” he explained.
Phillips and his family have purchased the land where First Baptist Church of Moss was located. It was destroyed by the tornado. They are currently in the works of building a home there.