HARDEE COUNTY, Fla. — In 2015, when Jamie Samuels founded her faith-based non-profit, SendMeMissions, she was looking to help people across the state of Florida and internationally. Then, Hurricane Ian hit.
More than a decade later, Samuels is using her faith in the Lord to navigate the fallout from one of the costliest hurricanes in the history of the United States.
"I joke all the time that I'm like, should I go get my GC (general contractor) license at this point," Samuels told ABC Action News reporter Michael Paluska. "I would have had no idea back in 2012 that this is where God would call us and lead us and the work that we'd be doing here in our community."
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The stories ABC Action News reported on after Ian made landfall in Sept. 2022 might feel familiar even today. That's because some families are just now getting the help they need. Some started rebuilding days and weeks after the storm, others later, and many may never recover.
"Just last week, we got a call on a gentleman who still doesn't have power since the storm hit. And we had no idea about him, no power, 92 years old, a veteran, and his wife died last month," Samuels said. "It's one of those things that those calls are hard to listen to."
She continued, "But again, I tell our team, like, take those burdens to the Lord. And the next morning, let's show up to work. Let's show up for them. And let's continue to do the work. So, our numbers are still increasing. But, we cannot knock them out fast enough to where we can even get our numbers to go lower."
Volunteers from faith-based organizations across the country have set their eyes on Florida. A new team from a different state shows up every couple of weeks.
"I'm helping where I can try not to get in the way," Richard Gilbert told Paluska.
Gilbert is a volunteer from Orange Hill Baptist Church in Chipley, Florida, in the Panhandle. We watched as he got a crash course learning how to cut and hang the drywall. But, for Gilbert, it is personal.
"Hurricane Michael, we went through it up there in the panhandle," Gilbert said. "It tore off half our roof, and my wife and I were inside when it was going on. The difference is I had all homeowners insurance. And, when it happened to me, it was totally different. I had a group of disaster relief volunteers come out and put a blue tarp on my roof after it blew off after the storm."
Now, he is a stranger giving back the way others did for him.
"I like to think that the volunteers help along the way," Gilbert said. "And the homeowner doesn't have to worry about writing about a check to us, you know, that eases their mind too."
Samuels said her team is already preparing to be stronger and more resilient for hurricane season.
"We do have the resources to act faster. It'll be hard. It'll be a tough one," Samuels said. "Personally, I know it'll be a tough one for even those in leadership that I'm working with. The meetings go on and on and on. But I know that six months later, funding is just now coming in for a lot of what we're doing. And it'll be hard. But, I can do all things through Christ."
