Volunteers will be needed for the long haul
Many hands make light work.
The old saying is proving true in Beaufort County today as the community recovers from Hurricane Matthew.
It has been inspiring to see all the work that has been done since the Category 2 hurricane pounded the shoreline in the early hours of Oct. 8. The focus will remain on how governments prepared and responded to the long-feared natural disaster. But the non-government response has been equally as important.
Quick looks at few of the countless individuals who went the extra mile to help others are featured in our print editions today and Monday.
They include those who sent images and words from the islands as soon as day broke on Oct. 8. Some got busy with chainsaws, others took in the elderly or reported for duty as first responders or electric-utility linemen when major life events at home were calling.
They are representative of so many people we all have seen. We’ve watched neighbor meeting neighbor, helping neighbor, recruiting others to help neighbor, taking in neighbor, sharing information or tree-service recommendations with neighbors — or even strangers.
We have seen churches, the Rotary Club and the Hilton Head Island High School football team collectively roll up their sleeves and help the elderly and the poor. Experienced disaster relief organizations, like Samaritan’s Purse, showed up to organize and guide local volunteers who otherwise might not have known where to start.
We have not seen people sitting on their hands waiting on the federal government, county government, town government or property owners association to solve all problems.
On the contrary, we have seen a groundswell of support for the local safety-net organizations like Deep Well, Bluffton Self Help and Volunteers in Medicine.
The Community Foundation of the Lowcountry reacted immediately to make money available. It set up the Disaster Recovery and Rebuilding Fund as a focal point for community giving. Local musicians, for example, raised their voices in song to raise money for the fund. It is also helping guide volunteer efforts through the Lowcountry Volunteer Connection.
The United Way of the Lowcountry, the Heritage Classic Foundation and countless other nonprofits and businesses have stepped in to help. For example, the SERG Group set a goal for this weekend to match $10,000 in donations from patrons of its restaurants and bars.
The storm peeled back a layer of veneer to show this wealthy community to be one with many people living hand to mouth. The hurricane left many workers broke. They lost wages, and sometimes even their jobs, while bearing the expense of a week of evacuation.
Many have lost housing, at least temporarily, and some have to pay rent even when they can’t live in their apartment.
A group of pastors met last week at First Presbyterian Church on Hilton Head to hear from community and nonprofit leaders on where we stand and what is next. Organizing pastor Doug Fletcher said they know the harder part lies ahead because it takes longer to put lives back together than it does to saw trees.
The pastors were anxious to know how they could help each other, because many hands make light work.
And they agreed to a community Thanksgiving service to be held at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20, at First Presbyterian Church, 540 William Hilton Parkway.
So many of the unheralded, rank-and-file people of this community have proven that we do indeed have a lot to be thankful for.
This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 2:16 PM with the headline "Volunteers will be needed for the long haul."