Leadership Augusta Class of 2025 Supports Helene Recovery Efforts
The first thing I noticed when I woke up at 3am on September 27 was the noise outside, wind like a freight train, and branches falling at an alarming rate. This chaos was replaced by a heavy silence as the sun came up, and we were able to survey the devastation Hurricane Helene caused in the CSRA.
Over the next few days, that heavy silence remained inside our homes, with no power or running water, and no cell phones to keep us occupied; however, outside you could hear the helpers buzzing away with chainsaws, moving downed trees, and checking on neighbors. And with this buzz of energy, came an understanding that were all in this together, but some community members suffered a far greater loss than others and help was needed.
Helene hit at the top of the weekend, and by the following Tuesday, Leadership Augusta’s Class of 2025 was signing up to replace our Arts & Culture Day with a volunteer day at the HUB.
The HUB, a collaborative center that houses five nonprofits and serves the local community, became home base to relief efforts after Hurricane Helene. A completely volunteer-ran operation, with the American Red Cross at the helm, started a drive-thru “resource pantry,” serving 1,500 cars on its first day. This effort was completely funded by donations, and served thousands of local citizens who were in need after the storm. Christy Beckham, super woman and past Leadership Augusta alum (not the best class like 2025, but the class of2013) was instrumental in ensuring the resource pantry at the HUB ran smoothly for 10 days, and was our point person at the HUB.
On October 10, the Leadership Augusta Class of 2025 showed up at 8:30am to start a full day of volunteerism. Some class members helped unpack food donations, organizing much-needed items into accessible “snack bags,” and took stock of what we had versus what was needed. Others stood outside and handed out items to community members who informed us from their cars about their needs, and size of household. These needs included hygiene products, diapers, shelf stable food, and bottled water. Over the next 8 or so hours, the class engaged with the community and strategized on how to best serve citizens with donations that continuously arrived thanks to our amazing community. Personally, I was blown away by this entire operation, and how well it worked and that it never seemed to slow down. It was obvious that the need was great, but our community rallied and that was truly inspiring to witness. The Class of 2025 was lucky to be in a position to be able to help, and we left that day tired, but feeling accomplished and inspired.