Church volunteers help clean up after Milton’s wrath

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) – Jeff Nash, 81, has lived in his Bradenton neighborhood for decades.

He said he was outside Thanksgiving Sunday when volunteers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints showed up to help cut down and remove large trees around his home damaged by Hurricane Milton.

“I’m 81 years old and I’m getting ready for hip surgery and my wife is 83 years old and can’t carry a chainsaw like she used to, so thank God for these guys,” Nash said. .

Volunteers from the church, wearing their signature yellow shirts, set up a command center on Cortez Road, where crews are dispatched to various recovery efforts around Sun Coast.

“Our headquarters sent about ten semi-trucks full of supplies to Florida to help with the work,” said Philip Reber of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Reber said hundreds of volunteers have canvassed the area over the past few weeks, doing everything from clearing trees and yard debris to helping people remove drywall from flood-damaged properties.

Reber added that all slots for the program have been booked by October 25, and the group is now working to complete each task as quickly as possible.

Church spokesmen added that in 1992, after Hurricane Andrew hit Florida, they began disaster relief efforts.