How Missionaries Are Helping With Hurricane Helene Relief Efforts

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This story appears here courtesy of TheChurchNews.com. It is not for use by other media.

By Kaitlyn Bancroft, Church News

Missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are helping clean up after the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene across the southeastern U.S.

According to information provided by the Church’s North America Southeast Area, missionaries served at command centers in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina during the first weekend of the Church’s disaster relief efforts from September 28-30.

The missionaries were among the over 6,000 Latter-day Saint volunteers who mucked out flooded homes, cleared debris, removed downed trees and tarped roofs. Volunteers worked through 11 command centers in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, giving 77,241 total volunteer hours and completing 3,018 work orders, with each work order representing one home.

Read more in this related Church News story Latter-day Saints give aid after Hurricanes Helene and Milton

The second weekend, October 4-6, saw 7,500 Latter-day Saint volunteers and 14 command centers across Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

South Carolina Columbia Mission President Scott Hamblin said his missionaries have had a “humbling but remarkable” experience assisting in Hurricane Helene cleanup.

“They have been eager to assist members and their neighbors and have been blessed by these close associations forged out of true discipleship,” President Hamblin said.

Florida Tallahassee Mission President Terry Trusty added that the missionaries are mindful of those whose situations are worse than their own.

“We know our Heavenly Father will comfort them, but we want to do our part to help comfort those in need of help here,” President Trusty said.

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Hurricane Helene made landfall late evening on Thursday, September 26, in the Big Bend region of the Florida Panhandle. As a Category 4 hurricane with winds of up to 140 miles per hour, up to 30 inches of rain and a record storm surge from waters piling up along Florida’s west coast, it was the strongest hurricane to ever hit the area and the deadliest to strike the U.S. since Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana in 2005. Over 200 people have died as of October 7, multiple news outlets have reported.

In the hurricane’s wake, the Church is sending trucks of water, food, hygiene kits and other essential supplies to the locations of greatest need.

All missionaries in the region are safe. Some Church buildings in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee were damaged, but the recently completed Tallahassee Florida Temple, located 50 miles northwest of the hurricane’s landfall, was not harmed. The temple’s public open house is still scheduled to begin on November 4.

Tennessee Missionaries Share Their Experiences

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Missionaries serving in the Knoxville Tennessee Mission shared feelings of love, happiness and fulfillment from serving their communities.

Sister Hannah Low from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, worked at a command center filling work orders, an experience she never expected to have while on her mission.

The opportunity showed her “how much love Heavenly Father has for all of his children, especially here. And I learned that I can be a conduit of that love.”

Sister Kobee Hall from Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, said cleaning up after Hurricane Helene feels like the hard work of her grandparents’ farm. Hard work is part of her heritage, she said, and service is important to her. “Having the opportunity to serve in the community as much as we can for the next [few] weeks is a way I can represent not just my Savior but also my family.”

Elder Matthew Richins from Lehi, Utah, said he was scraped up, sunburnt and needed a shower, but he “couldn’t be happier.” Helping with cleanup efforts has blessed him with a sense of fulfillment that can’t be found in any other way, he said.

“This has reaffirmed one of the most important lessons I’ve learned over my mission, which is that lasting happiness only comes through looking outwards towards others and never inwards towards yourself,” Elder Richins said.

And Sister Brinley JoAnn Harrison, also from Lehi, Utah, said the destruction is ugly and heartbreaking, but watching children of God come together is inspiring, humbling and beautiful.

“It has shown me that ‘things’ don’t matter, but love is what we start and end with. Jesus is love,” she said.

Florida Missionaries Share Their Experiences

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Missionaries in the Florida Tallahassee Mission also experienced love and joy while serving those in need.

Elder Samuel Webster from Rigby, Idaho, helped clear yards of fallen trees. Service helps others feel Christ’s love, he said, and seeing people smile is what drives him to do more.

Sister Rachel Maxwell from Saratoga Springs, Utah, has been on her mission for only a few days but is already in the thick of recovery efforts. She especially loves that the Church’s name is on the volunteers’ shirts. “It’s a really good way to represent Christ. This service is what it means to share the light of Christ.”

In the Florida Jacksonville Mission, Sister Taiya Louise Nickel from Alberta, Canada, is spending the last weeks of her mission giving service to those impacted by the hurricane. “I love feeling and sharing the light of Christ.”

And Sister Lily Madelyn Ensley from Huntington Beach, California, has been a missionary only two months but was eager to help with relief efforts — even when her name tag got lost in a pile of branches.

“[Missionaries] love the service aspect, and also, it’s the best way to take a natural disaster and use it as an opportunity for unity,” she said.

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