Tornado Relief for Hansen and Nelson Families

Hello, my name is Jake Heitman, a Minnesota based storm chaser. On July 8th, 2020, I witnessed the destruction of a tornado when it ripped through the towns of Dalton and Ashby, Minnesota. Sadly, this tornado destroyed buildings and claimed the life of a young man on July 8th, 2020. 


After the violent tornado occluded, I went to survey the damage. I met a neighbor of one of the properties that got destroyed, Jeremy Fronning. Although Jeremy's house was untouched, his neighbor Travis' property got destroyed, as well as damage to his house and shop. At the time, Jeremy and myself didn't know how bad Travis' property got hit. About three hours later, Jeremy messaged me and reported how bad it really was. He told me that one of Travis' employees died in the tornado and that Travis had lost his shop and equipment used to farm.

Jeremy reached out to me to help Travis' family and his employee's family that are in need of prayers and financial support. Jeremy tells me that Travis is a self-made mechanic who was looking for a better opportunity for his family. He started working at John Deer, but with the economy changing, he would eventually be laid off. Travis saw this as a new opportunity; an opportunity to start road trucking. He bought his own truck and had the vision of making his own dreams. He started up a shop on his property to help further his business. At his shop, Travis repairs farm and construction equipment. He would eventually hire an employee, a friend of Travis', a young man to help him with his business. This young man's life would be claimed on July 8th, 2020, as he was working in Travis' shop. 

When Jeremy reached out to me, he asked me to help Travis' family and the young man's family whose life was taken by the tornado.  Due to the current times, with COVID-19 and a tough economy, especially for small businesses, I wanted to start this GoFundMe for Travis' family and the family of the young man who lost his life. Currently, I do not have any more information on this, but will update as more becomes available. Jeremy is in contact with Travis and his family, but they also need some time to heal before they are ready to tell their own story. 100% of these funds will be going to Travis and the family of the young man who lost his life.


Thank you and please consider donating to help these families out.