RAYMOND, Neb. (AP) — Collecting piles of scrap metal, including some tornadoes left behind earlier this year, is helping a 72-year-old Nebraska man lead his small congregation’s effort to raise money for a new building.

Since 2010, Lyle McKlem has raised about $40,000 for Raymond United Methodist Church by selling the scrap metal he collects.

McKlem said he got the idea of collecting large pieces of metal after the church held an aluminum can drive.

Through word of mouth the campaign has grown, and McKlem says he gets calls regularly now from farmers or landowners with scrap metal to donate.