By Arnold R. Grahl and Etelka Lehoczky, from Rotary International
Ed Hallock thought he knew what a hurricane could do. Then Helene hit the Gulf Coast of Florida.
“I have been here 35 years, and this is the worst storm I have ever seen,” says Hallock, a member of the Rotary Club of Seminole Lake, Florida, USA. “We had a couple of Rotary members who really got hammered.”
A Category 4 hurricane, Helene battered areas in and around the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, and parts of the United States’ Eastern Seaboard during the last week of September. Storm surges and heavy rains produced extreme flooding throughout the region. More than 200 people have died in the U.S. states of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Other countries and areas that experienced severe flooding include the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Honduras, and Mexico.
Sandra Lilo, another member of the Seminole Lake club, says she’s lucky that her house wasn’t destroyed.
“Of the 80 houses on my street, probably 78 took water. I and my next-door neighbor did not,” she says. “Some of my neighbors took 4 feet of water. There are 2 or 3 feet of muck in most people’s houses.”
Even if they and their fellow club members weren’t directly affected, Rotary members all over the southeastern U.S. immediately offered funds, supplies, and their own labor. Many members are helping to remove sodden drywall and flooring from flood-damaged houses.
“You have to get the wet stuff out as fast as you can to prevent mold,” Hallock says. “Otherwise, it destroys the whole living space.”
The Rotary Club of Dunedin North, Florida, USA, rented a 26-foot moving truck to collect donations. It’s full of shovels and rakes, cases of water, garbage bags, and utility knives to cut up and remove wet carpet. The club has set up four distribution centers where people can get supplies.
“This is why you are a Rotarian,” says Mark Middleton, a member of the Dunedin North club and a district governor-nominee. Dunedin North has five members whose homes were destroyed.
“We have multiple clubs going to homes, mucking out and gutting these houses. Dry wall has to be cut out as high as the water line, and all flooring has to be cut out,” Middleton says. “What a blessing it is that we can help and be there for them. You become close to your Rotary family. When we can support and help each other, it becomes impactful.”
Many Rotary clubs are collecting and distributing supplies, raising funds, and assisting those affected by Hurricane Helene.
How one company is using customer opinions to generate millions for nonprofits & now our club!!
Northbrook Rotary Club members,
On 10/21/24 we will begin a new fund-raiser overseen by a company named HundredX.
It will involve no monetary outlay from you, your family or friends. The fund-raiser will involve each of us selecting and rating, by email text or both, up to 75 brands or companies from a list of 3000.
SCOPE:
The ratings are simple and can each be done in less than two minutes.
For each we will receive $1.60 with a maximum recovery of $10,000 for the club.
The project will end on 11/18/24.
All opinions are private and personal information will not be shared.
We will not be able to reach $10,000 with our present membership of 54.
Therefore, I am requesting that each member recruit at least one non-Rotarian, over the age of 18, to take part in this survey.
Each member will receive, around 10/21/24, an email advising you of the link to use in order for you to sign up, and there will be a section to click in order for you to invite others to sign up.
Debbie Madeley, Rick Rivkin and Sandy Frum have all volunteered to assist anyone having difficulty with the technical aspects of this project. Feel free to reach out to them if you run into difficulty.
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