"He wasn't as lucky. He didn't keep his stuff on dry land."

Shannon McKenney tried to explain the storm's destruction to his son, Ian.

"The couch, the laundry, the washer and dryer, it was all out in the front yard," McKenney added.

His family is looking for help to put their lives back together.

"We don't know how long it will be until we can put something back here."

So, McKenny joined dozens of other storm victims at the meeting with state and federal officials to hear about a self-help program.

"As far as I know, it's like a Habitat for Humanity," he said.

"We take eligible families and they all work together as a team to help build each other's homes," explained Steven Gerrish of USDA's Rural Development.

McKenny is waiting to hear if his family qualifies for the self-help housing program.

"They're doing the best they can," he admitted. "You know, it's not just like they can jump in there and fix everything right away. It's going to take time."

The self-help housing program already has helped build dozens of homes in northern Missouri. It's available to eligible, rural Missouri families, even if last weekend's storms didn't affect them.