Sarasota program pays some families' bills as they recover from hurricane season
Residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast endured two major hurricanes and a tropical storm in the span of nine weeks, and they are still feeling the economic shockwaves
Cecilia Grove didn’t work for 38 days after Hurricane Helene's storm surge flooded the kitchen of the restaurant where she waits tables.
The Cottage, a local and tourist favorite on Siesta Key near Sarasota, Florida, might have reopened sooner, but Hurricane Milton made landfall on the key 13 days later.
The wait was excruciating for Grove. The 39-year-old single mother cares for her seven-year-old daughter Aria, who is deaf and depends on cochlear implants, and her father, who lives with them. “I’m one person feeding three of us,” she said.
After draining her savings to pay for car and health insurance, rent, and food, Grove’s options were to tap into a savings account she’d set up for her daughter or start racking up credit card debt.
Instead, she got help from Season of Sharing, a Sarasota-based program that pays essential expenses for households in crises. Since Helene, the fund has spent over $710,000 helping more than 400 families impacted by the storms. It paid Grove's rent for November and December, letting her catch up on past bills.
“It made me cry,” she said. “I couldn't believe they were willing and able to do that for me.”
Residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast endured two major hurricanes and a tropical storm in the span of nine weeks, and they are still feeling the economic fallout. The disasters aren't just costly for those whose properties were damaged or destroyed. Replacing food that spoiled during power outages, evacuating to a hotel room, and missing weeks of work all strain budgets too.
“All of those things when put in relationship with
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