In this age of too much political negativity and price gouging it is sometimes difficult to find and see the positive. But here it is staring out at me from my kitchen window.

Hurricane Ian blasted through Fort Myers, Florida on September 28, 2022. It was a devastating storm with 155 mph gusting winds and an 18-foot storm surge along the Southwest coast of Florida. The storm crossed through central Florida, heading towards the Northeast coast of Florida with gusting winds of 100 mph.

While the storm passed some 50 miles south of my house, there were 10 trees uprooted on my little dead-end street. My neighbor, a widow who works a full-time job in a 7-11 convenience store, to make ends meet was faced with a mess. She had to get 4 huge downed trees to the curb for the county 's contractor to haul them away as he is not allowed to enter private property. She was quoted $3,000 just to cut up the trees and move them to the curb. An excessive price to say the least.

As it turn out, all my neighbor really had to do, since she was abutting an unused county roadway, was cut the trees at the stump so the county-hired crews could grab the trees with their machinery and haul them away to dispose of them.

Naturally, many homeowners are incapable of safely operating chain saws or being involved with heavy manual labor and the prices in an emergency seem to often get out of control. When it comes to absorbing the cost, some 60% of Americans don't have even $500 for such an emergency.

In my neighbor's case, there was a silver lining, a gift from God, and the best of those living the four Gospels of Jesus Christ. So to the resce came volunteers organized by a small church in Deland, Florida.

These Christian volunteers from the congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Deland, Florida - (in no particular order) Joseph Eakins, Palm Coast; Luis Rodriguiez, Orange City; Don Gooden, Palm Coast; Jackson McMillan, Palm Coast; Brain McMillan, Palm Coast; Josh Wooten, Palm Coast; Spenser Arn, Deland.

Not only did these volunteers donate their time they also paid for their transportation up to 150 miles round trip using their own equipment and vehicles..

 
As you can see this was not at all easy work. It is one thing to support one's local community but quite another to venture out to those further away. Instead of stalking voters with guns, these are the true heroes of Christian charity. and the true spirit of America.

These volunteers are being coordinated by an international organization called Crisis Clean-up. 

Crisis Cleanup is a collaborative disaster work order management platform that improves coordination, reduces duplication of efforts, improves efficiency, and improves volunteers' experience. It coordinates with more than 1800 organizations that help a lot of survivors  with the "4Cs" of disaster recovery: Communication, Coordination, Collaboration, and Cooperation (as well as the fifth silent "C", Competition).

Crisis Cleanup is an open source project assisting those who directly help survivors.. The organization is operated by Crisis Cleanup, LLC, a Colorado limited liability company. Other organizations sponsor implementations of Crisis Cleanup in Australia, India, the Philippines, and elsewhere. They have volunteers and member groups from many non-profit organizations including various religions.

About the Author

Robert Jennings is the co-publisher of InnerSelf.com, a platform dedicated to empowering individuals and fostering a more connected, equitable world. A veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army, Robert draws on his diverse life experiences, from working in real estate and construction to building InnerSelf.com with his wife, Marie T. Russell, to bring a practical, grounded perspective to life’s challenges. Founded in 1996, InnerSelf.com shares insights to help people make informed, meaningful choices for themselves and the planet. More than 30 years later, InnerSelf continues to inspire clarity and empowerment.

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