When Hurricane Ian Showed Up,
Women’s Council of Realtors Florida Members Stepped Up
by Charmaine Hickey, PMN - 2023 Florida State President
We thought we were prepared but nothing could have prepared us for the devastation inflicted on us here in Florida after this catastrophic storm. One of the strongest hurricanes we have seen in this Country came to visit us in Florida and stayed as it moved slowly through our state. It flooded and destroyed our homes, winds took roofs, rising waters took cars, and in some areas, it turned roads into rivers and shattered our historic sites. As the surge continued, we prayed alone and in groups that lives would be spared. Over 2.7 million of our residents lost electricity and have no water. Many of our members and their families lost homes, but what hurts more is the many lives that are lost.
Then, our Florida Women’s Council members showed up and stepped in. Hurricane Ian took our ‘things that we worked so hard for, but it did not take our spirit nor our soul’. We are true to our Mission Statement of supporting each other and the community we serve, not only in the formality of our Network business but when it is needed in these deeply personal moments too.
As Ian turned his sight to another state, the phones started ringing without missing a beat. Multiple calls, texts, zooms and emails later had members forming groups (Project Teams) to collect items and transport them to people in need. We planned and executed. The logistics and timeline were coordinated to get much-needed items to our members. Group chat had members opening their homes to others, driving 2-3 hours to pick up friends, and even lending a car to one of our members who lost both of her cars.
Florida REALTORS® activated the Florida Disaster Relief Funds, and this link went viral for anyone who needed to apply.
Our sisters from across the Women’s Council National family also stepped in and offered their support (monetary and in-kind) and for this, we say, Thank You. To our Realtor nation, we appreciate your support. To our Florida Women's Council members who went above and beyond and showed up in cars, trucks, and uhauls, thank you, thank you.
As I said before, Ian has taken our personal memories, keepsakes, and things, but we are resilient, we will lock arms together and continue to hold each other up as we are stronger together. The writing is on the wall, kindness matters, yes it does. Let your action be your S.M.I.L.E.
If you are looking for contact information and ways to help our Florida Women's Council Members, please email state@wcrflorida.com.
If you are a Florida Women's Council member seeing the good happening around you and would like to describe how your Realtor family has stepped up to help during this unprecedented time, please email jthomas@wcr.org so that we can set up a brief interview for our follow-up article in November.