Many graduating seniors at Joplin High School are anxious to geton with their lives. Somewhat incredibly, even a visit fromPresident Obama on Monday evening was not enough to dampen thedesire of many teens to move on from a tragedy that has defined acommunity in the nation's eyes.

But the reality is that the community has been movingon—rapidly by some accounts—from last year's EF-5 tornado that plowed through 7,500 homes andmore than 500 businesses, claiming 161 lives and inflicting $2.8billion in damages.

Click to see exclusive video footage of the tornado damage inJoplin one year ago.

Contrary to a cursory glance at Google Maps, there has beentremendous progress in Joplin in the past year. This was evident atTuesday's series of commemorative events, where tears did flow butanticipation of brighter days pervaded the air. The day began witha memorial service at Freeman and included a Unity Walk,groundbreaking ceremonies for local schools and a host of sobering,yet inspiring speeches by politicians and others.

In a ceremony held at a local park where 161 trees were plantedto honor the victims, Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr announced thatof the 7,500 homes affected by the storm, “61 percent are underpermits to be rebuilt or have already been repaired orrebuilt.”

Rebuilding Joplin has been a valiant endeavor, one that 130,000volunteers have readily assumed. Brick by brick, hand by hand,determined Joplin residents, charitable and faith-based groups, andindividuals from outlying communities, as well as insurance companyadjusters, restoration and construction professionals havedramatically altered the landscape of mangled buildings andanorexic trees.

One consistent presence in the community has been Convoy ofHope, which delivered thousands of pounds of food and supplies todisplaced residents and has since stayed to help rebuildhouses.

A diverse meld of these devoted souls, including medicalprofessionals who “sutured under the glow of a flashlight” joinedmedia and first-time Joplin visitors yesterday to celebrate theprogress.

The following slideshow depicts some of the many highlights,including nearly 10,000 processing through the tornado's epicenter.This orderly march was a rapid departure from the horror of peoplesearching through rubble on May 22, 2011. Additionally,contributions of Habitat for Humanity (particularly the Tulsa,Okla. chapter) and even Extreme Makeover: Home Edition aretangible, in the form of new homes situated on pristine lots.

Photo credit: Dwight Douglas,all rights reserved

On this same day in 2011, thousandsfrantically sifted through mounds of debris for survivors andpossessions. This year, nearly 10,000 people gathered to embarkupon a “Walk of Unity” to symbolize where Joplin has been and whereit is going.

Photo credit: Dwight Douglas,all rights reserved

The procession made its way through a3.7-mile stretch of the tornado zone and boundless sunlight.

Photo credit: Dwight Douglas,all rights reserved

City leaders spoke fondly of the 130,000 registered volunteerswho have been instrumental in a recovery effort that is, in manyways, unparalleled. The outpouring of help from neighboring citieshas been immense, with some arriving only with their bare hands orbasic household tools.

“A man who lives a couple of hours away arrived shortly afterthe tornado with his two sons and some chain saws,” said DwightDouglas, counsel for Freeman Health Systems. “They just dove rightin, clearing branches and helping distraught homeowners.”

The United Arab Emirates, which firstmade local headlines after donating laptops to Joplin Highstudents, announced on Tuesday that it would contribute $5million to Mercy's St. Johns. A local “chainsaw” artist createdthis sculpture, which sits at the temporary home of JoplinHigh.

Photo credit: ChristinaBramlet, all rights reserved

In a ceremony held at a local parkwhere 161 trees were planted to honor the victims, Joplin CityManager Mark Rohr announced that of the 7,500 homes affected by thestorm, “61 percent are under permits to be rebuilt or have alreadybeen repaired or rebuilt.”

Photo credit: ChristinaBramlet, all rights reserved

The sheer cleanup involved has been staggering. FEMA covered 90percent of the cost of clearing out the debris, while Missouriabsorbed the remaining 10 percent.

“They blocked off all traffic for 60days in the epicenter for 350 trucks to move in to clean up,”Douglas said.

Photo credit: ChristinaBramlet, all rights reserved

The Extreme Makeover: HomeEdition team built several homes on this street less than amile away from the demolished St. John's.

Photo credit: ChristinaBramlet, all rights reserved

“The talk of sacrifice and resilience of the Joplin community isnot a cliché,” Gov. Nixon told members of the press following theFreeman Memorial Service. The reality is that these peopledid not give up. They didn't leave. They stayed and rebuilt thetown.”

Heavily impacted after the storm were area renters, some of whomstill reside in FEMA trailers, which can be seen when flying intothe Joplin Regional Airport.