Salvation Army volunteers from Massachusetts delivering help and hope to hurricane survivors
BOSTON - Massachusetts neighbors, longtime volunteers with the Salvation Army, are among the many helpers already in position to respond to the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.
"They come up and they say 'when we saw your trucks pulling in, we knew the Salvation Army was here!'" Pam Houghton said.
Pam Houghton from Newburyport and Cindy Kennedy from Athol have been with the organization for more than 30 years. First to Florida for Hurricane Helene, they're now on standby in Georgia, so they can quickly go to where they're needed most.
"You saw the increase in the devastation heading this way. There's a lot of areas still without any electricity," said Kennedy. "There's trees down on their houses. They've lost pretty much everything. Major damage."
Every Salvation Army team that goes out to serve includes an emotional and spiritual care provider. They support the survivors, but also their own helpers as this back-to-back relief work over hours, days and weeks can take a toll.
"It's an ongoing process"
"We're still dealing with survivors from Ian, let alone Helene, let alone Milton. So it's an ongoing process," said Captain Jeremy Mockabee with The Salvation Army.
During times of disaster, 100% of designated donations to The Salvation Army are used for immediate response and long-term efforts. These teams are out straight before they even return to Florida.
"Every Salvation Army truck that goes out has about 1,000 meals for lunch and 1,000 meals for dinner. And we're coming back with empty trucks," said Houghton.
More volunteers will leave New England this weekend, answering the call to deliver help and hope.
"If there is any silver lining in this devastation, it's seeing people come together regardless of how much money they have in their account, regardless of race, regardless of gender, regardless of anything," Mockabee said.