Food wasn’t only thing Gullah chef cooked up

Hurricane Matthew battered thousands of buildings and trees and caused widespread power outages and flooding throughout the Lowcountry in the early morning hours of Oct. 8. But the Category 2 storm didn’t dampen the resolve of residents determined to help their neighbors – and complete strangers – who were suffering. Read here about some of these unsung heroes.

For many Hilton Head Island residents who evacuated for Hurricane Matthew and worried about their homes, they had David Vincent Young.

Young, 45, drove around Hilton Head Island shortly after the storm, posting videos of the damage to social media. The videos, viewed by tens of thousands, were featured on national television.

“I was just driving around and seeing what happened,” Young said. “I really didn’t think about what I was doing. I was just trying to bring information to folks.”

Young said he was one of the few people out and about on Hilton Head Island in the storm’s immediate aftermath.

“There was just water everywhere and downed trees everywhere,” he said.

Driving around in his Jeep, Young pulled out his phone and turned on Facebook Live, which broadcasted live video of the island before many people could return.

At first, it was just a handful of friends watching and commenting on the video.

“Before long, it was ‘Go here. Go there.’… They wanted to know how the island fared,” Young said. “All of a sudden, The Weather Channel contacted me wanting to use my live feed.”

By Oct. 21, one 24-minute video had collected more than 81,000 views on Facebook.

As the island was reopened, Young went back to work as a chef at Ruby Lee’s South restaurant. He helped cook for first responders at a recent cookout.

“They were laying the groundwork. They were getting the trees off the road,” Young said.

In the days since Hurricane Matthew veered off into the Atlantic, Young said he’s helped other residents clear trees and debris. He’s also tried to help others pay for food and rent.

“I just used the little that I had to do what I could,” he said.

Young used a Go Fund Me page to help pay for food for residents and first responders. He also hopes to teach others about his native Gullah culture and cuisine.

“A lot of people don’t know about the Gullah culture and about the food,” he said. “I’m doing what I can to bring awareness about the area.”

Young said he’s been grateful for the stronger sense of community that has emerged after Hurricane Matthew.

“It doesn’t matter what your socioeconomic situation is; people were affected,” he said.

Young, who was born and raised on Hilton Head Island, is optimistic about the post-Matthew recovery and “getting back to normal.”

“Everyday it gets a little bit better,” he said. “Everyone wants to see this island be what it was before the storm.”

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Daniel Salazar: @imdanielsalazar, dsalazar@wichitaeagle.com

This story was originally published October 30, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Food wasn’t only thing Gullah chef cooked up."