ANNA MARIA ISLAND, Fla. — In October 2024, ABC Action News Gives raised more than $72,000 for hurricane recovery thanks to generous donations from ABC Action News viewers and the Scripps Howard Fund.
ABC Action News Gives gave that money to various local nonprofits helping people rebuild after the storms.
ABC Action News Anchor Lauren St. Germain presented a $5,000 check to the Center of Anna Maria Island in October. She went back to the center in March to learn how they used that money and how they are helping to rebuild the island.
“The past few months have been a whirlwind. You go from the devastation of two hurricanes to trying to coordinate volunteer base and try to you know put the island back together,” said Christopher Culhane, Executive Director of the Center of Anna Maria Island.
St. Germain first met Culhane after the hurricanes ravaged Anna Maria Island. The Center of Anna Maria Island was a hub for donations and volunteers.
“The island always takes care of its own and steps up to help everyone,” said Culhane.
“We were able to present you with $5000 thanks to our amazing viewers – what were you able to do with that money?” asked St. Germain.
“Thank you first off for the donation. We started feeding those in need, whether it was the workers or the community that just needed a hot meal because they didn’t have a kitchen to cook in. We then transitioned into a volunteer base and you know rebuilding the community and helping support whatever that need was,” said Culhane.
The work did not stop there.
“After the fact this past January, we did a beach renourishment project here on the north end of Anna Maria and planted 30,000 plants to restore the sand dunes that we lost in the storm,” said Culhane.
Culhane said a few hundred volunteers stepped up to help with that project.
“Clearly spring break season is in full effect. We dealt with the traffic today. Traffic is a bad thing … but also a good thing at the same time,” said St. Germain.
“It’s funny because you see online and social media posts and people are actually glad for the traffic which is never the case, so it’s great to have a little bit of life and people in our businesses,” said Culhane.
ABC Action News saw life back when on the island. Just one example was at a community farmer’s market, which now has a temporary home on the fields at the Center of Anna Maria Island every Tuesday.
“Many construction workers, many vacationers here now, which is also great to see, but you know the community is still rebuilding. It’s going to take a couple more months, but it’s great to see everybody back at it,” said Culhane.
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