After the kitchen of the restaurant where Cecilia Grove waits tables was inundated by the storm surge from Hurricane Helene, she was out of work for 38 days.
The Cottage, a popular tourist and local destination on Siesta Key near Sarasota, Florida, may have reopened sooner, but 13 days later, Hurricane Milton hit the island.
Grove was suffering from the wait. The 39-year-old single mother looks after her father, who lives with them, and her seven-year-old daughter Aria, who is deaf and requires cochlear implants. She remarked, “I’m one person feeding three of us.”
Grove’s options were to start accruing credit card debt or draw from a savings account she had set up for her daughter after spending all of her money on rent, food, and health and auto insurance.
Rather, she received assistance from Season of Sharing, a Sarasota-based initiative that covers basic costs for homes experiencing emergencies. More than 400 families affected by the storms have received assistance from the fund since Helene, totaling over $710,000. Grove was able to pay up on past bills because it covered her rent for November and December.
I cried over it, she said. The fact that they were willing and able to accomplish it for me astounded me.
After nine weeks following two powerful hurricanes and a tropical storm, residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast are still dealing with the economic effects. The costs of the disasters are not limited to the people whose property was destroyed or damaged. Budgets are further strained by having to replace food that went bad during power outages, stay in a hotel, and miss weeks of work.
When combined with people’s disposable income, all of those factors provide significant difficulties, according to Sara McTarnaghan, a lead research associate at the Urban Institute.
According to studies, households with low and moderate incomes are more affected because they do not have savings to rely on. Certain types of assistance will be unavailable to renters, uninsured people, and undocumented or informal workers. The repercussions of financial default, poor credit, or even eviction extend beyond the immediate aftermath of a storm.
While waiting for aid, homes can be tied over or have gaps filled by programs like Season of Sharing.
According to Kirsten Russell, vice president of community impact at the Community Foundation of Sarasota, the program’s sponsor, it is crucial to have stability in a chaotic family. Communities recover when households do.
By contacting one of the 100 NGOs in the fund’s network or by phoning the 211 non-emergency hotline, residents of Sarasota, DeSoto, Manatee, and Charlotte counties can apply for Season of Sharing. Case managers assist them with the application process. The bill is paid directly by Season of Sharing if it is accepted.
The program only covers housing, transportation, daycare, and utility bills, but also looks for methods to assist those who are dealing with extra costs associated with the crisis. The fund may be used to pay a mortgage in order to free up money for a family to replace their flood-damaged washing machine.
Season of Sharing was established 25 years ago by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and the Community Foundation of Sarasota. It provides year-round assistance, but in response to this exceptional storm season, it temporarily relaxed its application requirements and raised the maximum payouts.
According to Christina Russi, a fiscal agent for Season of Sharing for more than ten years, the program works well in times of need because people are already familiar with and trust it.
There has never been any glamour. You can’t ask for more than that—it’s dependable, consistent, and arrives when it’s supposed to.
Grove was able to continue working toward her objective of leaving the restaurant business and obtaining a more secure job to help support her kid thanks to the rent assistance provided by Season of Sharing. She is enrolled in required courses for a college program to become an X-ray technician, and she recently received her GED.
I can stop worrying about money and keep concentrating on my daughter and my studies. Grove, who asked for FEMA assistance after Helene but was turned down, said, “Someone gave me an opportunity to take a breath and I can keep going in the direction to improve my life.” After Milton, she got a $770 FEMA payout, but it wasn’t enough. She responded, “That’s gone in just a couple days when you’re not working.”
After a tragedy, it may take years for economically disadvantaged households to catch up, if they ever do. According to a 2019 Urban Institute study, four years following a medium-sized disaster, the average credit score decline for those with good credit before to the disaster was 8 points, while the average credit score decline for those with poor credit was 29 points.
Daniel Teles, a co-author of the study and lead research associate at the Urban Institute, stated that when things were going badly, they continued to become worse. According to studies, low-income households had greater rates of evictions and mortgage delinquencies in the years following a disaster.
According to Teles, one factor contributing to these results is that not all people in need of support are reached by the disaster assistance systems in place. They may have trouble accessing the current aid systems, and there may be gaps between what the federal government provides and what individuals truly need, he said, adding that public policy adjustments are required to close those gaps.
The holes must then be filled by foundations like the Sarasota one and their funders.
Due to Hurricane Helene, the Community Foundation of Sarasota began its Season of Sharing fundraising drive one month earlier than usual, which usually takes place in November and December. To date, it has raised more than $3.85 million, which includes $250,000 from the Baltimore Orioles, $1 million from the Patterson Foundation, and $500,000 from the Sheila Jellison Family Foundation and Eliza and Hugh Culverhouse Jr. Additionally, it is driven by community support: over the past ten years, one-third of donations have come from amounts under $100.
The organization is receiving applications from people who have never sought assistance before, and the volume of applications increased in November.
Grove expressed her hope that more people will allow themselves to rely on support following a storm season that is unlike any that her neighborhood has experienced. She asserted that the programs exist for a purpose. I’ll find a way, which is my standard motto, but when you don’t have money coming in, you can’t find a way. Therefore, it is acceptable to seek assistance if someone is willing to do so.
With funding from Lilly Endowment Inc., the Associated Press collaborates with The Conversation US to promote its coverage of NGOs and philanthropy. This content is entirely the responsibility of the AP. Go to https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy to view all of AP’s coverage on philanthropy.
The Associated Press, 2024. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. It is prohibited to publish, broadcast, rewrite, or redistribute this content without authorization.
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!