Business accepting donations for South Carolina flood victims
Washington native Lindsay Shearer and her daughter, Kaylee, sort through donations for South Carolina flood victims.
Marc and Sonja Hobbs of McKean Plumbing and Heating are collecting donations for the victims of South Carolina floods at their Washington business.
Donations from local residents for flood relief filled a box truck and large SUV. The Hobbses will return to South Carolina this week with a second haul.
Nineteen people died as a result of recent flooding in South Carolina.
Since the first rainfall Oct. 2, homes, schools and businesses have been destroyed. Roads and bridges have collapsed. Farmers’ entire crops have been spoiled.
“Nobody knows what this is like until you see it,” said Washington native Cindy Brookman, who now lives in Myrtle Beach.
Brookman, who walked away with a ruined yard, screened-in porch and air-conditioning unit, considers herself lucky. Taking the brunt of the storm are the residents of Columbia, S.C., many of whom, like Brookman, don’t have the requisite insurance because they don’t live in a flood zone.
“There are people that absolutely escaped with just the shirt on their backs,” she said.
Lindsay Shearer, a 2000 Trinity Area School District graduate, lives in Blythewood, S.C., a suburb of Columbia.
“She got through the flood fine,” said Shearer’s mother, Sonja Hobbs, as she suppressed tears. “It’s just humbling to see what these people have to go through.”
When Shearer, who is piloting a collection effort for victims, asked her parents to use their business, McKean Plumbing and Heating on West Chestnut Street, Washington, as a donation drop-off spot, Sonja and Marc Hobbs didn’t hesitate.
“She saw the need that surrounded her. She feels a strong responsibility in putting it in the right place. She’s been working very hard in doing that,” Hobbs said. “It’s phenomenal how it has snowballed.”
The Hobbses expected to haul donations in their SUV this past weekend. They ended up loading the SUV and a box truck to maximum capacity with contributions from area residents.
“It’s just amazing to me, people who come and hand in checks and cash,” Hobbs said. “The community is just phenomenal.”
Hobbs will continue to accept donations through Friday at noon. Toiletries, baby items such as diapers and wipes, gift cards, cleaning supplies, nonperishable food items and monetary donations are most needed. And while they will transport the many gently used clothes that already have been collected, donation centers have been oversaturated with garments.
“The problem with getting too many clothes is that a lot of people are still displaced, and they don’t have a place to store things,” Hobbs said. “It’s just going to take them a long time to rebuild.”
Meanwhile, Trinity cheerleaders continue their “Sock it Out” drive to collect new pairs of socks through Friday. Trinity students can drop off donations in the “Socks box” located in their schools’ cafeterias and offices. The Hobbses will take them on their return trip Friday.
“You see the devastation in these people’s faces. There are tears in their eyes and a smile, sometimes for the first time in a long time. There’s a lot of appreciation and gratitude,” Hobbs said. “If everybody does a little, a lot can be done.”