Church Delivers Meals, Supplies To Hurricane Victims: 'It Does Your Heart Good'
ODENTON, MD — The sun hadn’t yet risen, but work was well underway at an Odenton church. The congregation operated like an assembly line in the predawn light, their warm breath casting plumes of steam on the brisk autumn air as they packed donation bins for Hurricane Helene victims.
The 1,000 personal hygiene kits and 170 flood cleanup buckets were so heavy that the back of the truck was noticeably weighed down. Four parishioners and their pastor at First Evangelical Lutheran Church left for western North Carolina on Monday, kickstarting a three-day service trip to assist ongoing relief efforts after September’s deadly storm.
“What may seem like a really dark time with this devastation, [our goal is] to bring them hope and just show them the love of Christ,” Pastor Corey Brooks told Patch in a Monday interview.
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Scarred Landscape
Brooks has led First Evangelical Lutheran since August 2023, but he originally hails from the foothills of North Carolina. He grew up in Catawba County, about 90 minutes south of where his team dropped the supplies.
The pastor still has family in Ashe County, one of the areas pummeled by Helene. Brooks fondly remembers childhood cabin trips to the region, but the landscape remains scarred from the storm.
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“We saw refrigerators in tops of trees, a lot of debris and a lot of devastation just from how high the water rose and how forceful the water was,” Brooks said on Friday.
Helene made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast on Sept. 26 as a Category 4 hurricane with 140 mph winds. It reached North Carolina the next day, dumping 8 to 12 inches of rain in the mountains. Some local rainfall totals reached 30 inches.
At least 96 people died in North Carolina, which suffered $53.6 billion in damage. The state reported damage to 126,000 homes as well as 1,000 roads and bridges. Around 220,000 households are expected to apply for assistance.
“We saw a house that was picked up and carried by the water and now just sits in the middle of a field,” parishioner Kendall McElwee wrote to Patch on Friday after the trip. “We also saw multiple cars in the middle of no where flipped upside down.”
Despite the tribulations, the crew also heard stories of triumph and community unity.
Floodwaters destroyed the only bridge leading to Tuckerdale Missionary Baptist Church in Lansing. The rebuild is already underway thanks to community donations, and a nearby church is hosting temporary services for the congregation.
The First Evangelical Lutheran crew served 400 hot meals on the trip. One food service stop was at the damaged Brushy Fork Baptist Church in Vilas, which is still distributing meals and supplies.
“They had destruction with their own church building, but yet they’re still serving people in need,” Brooks said.
Outpouring Of Support
Community service is nothing new for First Evangelical Lutheran, the host of a twice-weekly food pantry. The church holds monthly charity dinners and serves 200 meals to people experiencing homelessness each month. It also aspires to beautify the WB&A Trail, which starts just outside its front door.
Margie Mallary frequently contributes to these efforts. She felt “moved” to volunteer in North Carolina as well.
“I love helping people,” Mallary told Patch moments before heading down on Monday. “We’re called to love one another and be there for one another.”
First Evangelical Lutheran launched its hurricane relief drive on Oct. 1. Donors included churches from Glen Burnie to Greenbelt and home improvement stores from Severn to Pasadena.
“The donations have just been pouring in,” Mallary said. “It does your heart good to know that there are people out there that still have good in them with all the bad that’s in the world.”
The trailer was packed to the brim with flood buckets, the truck bed was overflowing with water bottles and every minivan crevice was stuffed with diapers and wipes. Blankets, flashlights and batteries: they were all smushed in there, with just enough room for the passengers.
Monday at 7:37 a.m., they pulled out for the seven-hour, 400-mile trek down south.
The group also included Mallary’s husband, Michael, and McElwee’s mother, Krissy. The pastor’s wife, Kristen, and daughter, Avery, were already in North Carolina and also pitched in. Brooks’ parents, Randy and Reba, similarly joined the team to serve meals.
The experience left McElwee equally saddened by the loss and inspired by the recovery.
“I feel hurt that those people are still suffering,” she stated. “Though I do feel forever thankful that I had the opportunity to help in the ways that I could and hopefully bring a little light to such a dark time.”
Brooks reported that the victims appreciated the helping hand but acknowledged the long road to recovery ahead. The hurricane may seem like ages ago for those outside its path, but the pain remains all-encompassing for those who lost everything.
“It’s really really hard to fathom. I’d seen pictures. I’d seen the videos,” Brooks said. “But especially to see it in the place that I spent a lot of time growing up in my childhood and witnessing firsthand just the devastation was hard.”
First Evangelical Lutheran is still collecting monetary donations for future disaster relief at felc.churchcenter.com/giving.
Related: Hurricane Relief Kits Collected At Anne Arundel Church Heading To NC Victims
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