When life hands you a derecho, you pick up the best fallen branch from your yard and hand-whittle a baseball bat. At least, that's what 12-year-old Tommy from Mount Vernon did.⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ Pictures of Tommy's "The Great Derecho" wooden bat were posted on a Facebook group connecting Iowans to resources after last week's storm. After getting a wave of positive response, Tommy has decided to continue making bats, and plans to donate a portion of profits towards disaster relief in Cedar Rapids.⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ The original bat was made for a friend's birthday, and Tommy spent ten hours making it by hand. Now that he has orders stacking up, he says he'll use a lathe to make more "Great Derecho" bats, and will enlist his grandpa's help in the production.⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ Follow the link in our bio to order your own "The Great Derecho" bat to support The Greater Cedar Rapids Foundation Disaster Relief Fund. #GoodnewsIA⁠⠀