Words by Andrew Williams

In 2024, Florida’s West Coast endured a dizzying parade of violent storms. First came Debby, then hurricanes Helene and finally Milton — which made landfall on October 9, 2024, with sustained winds of 150 mph. 

In their wake, the storms caused widespread damage to homes and essential infrastructure, such as roads, power grids, and coastal protection systems, such as dunes and seawalls.

As the planet’s climate steadily warms, experts fear massive storms like Milton, feasting on the Gulf of Mexico’s unseasonably warm waters, will become more commonplace and continue to blanket large swaths of land with torrential rain, ferocious winds, deadly storm surges and fast-moving tornadoes that can unexpectedly blitz communities.

If we believe this hurricane season was a test run of the ability of the systems and structures in places like Manatee County to withstand a direct hit and a sign of what’s to come, then more than ever, families and communities will rely on the expertise, generosity, and know-how of local organizations to be there, again and again, to help them recover.

Elected officials like Manatee County Commissioner George Kruse, who is hyper-focused on serving the needs of local constituents, know firsthand how critical organizations like Meals on Wheels PLUS are during disaster scenarios. For public officials, communication is key at every level; knowing where to turn and when can streamline local disaster response efforts. 

“They know the community, they understand the community, they understand the needs,” George says.

Since its inception in 1972, Meals on Wheels of Manatee has added the “PLUS” of expanded services, including The Food Bank of Manatee. These expanded operations give the organization a unique perspective on the community's needs and a sturdy reputation for supporting them. 

It also represents the power and stability of Meals on Wheels’ national brand.

“When you hear Meals on Wheels PLUS, everybody knows someone somewhere in the country and beyond who has either experienced it or knows someone who has,” says Frank Perry, VP of Strategic Food Bank and Transportation Operations, for Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee. “That branded name, it’s like Coca-Cola and Kleenex: soda and tissues.”

Service organizations, like the local Meals on Wheels PLUS, are often deeply entrenched in the community, well-connected, trusted, logistically efficient, highly committed, and, most importantly, there for the long haul. Meals on Wheels  PLUS delivers meals and hope, signaling to individuals that they are not alone, especially when disaster strikes.

Meals on Wheels PLUS provides easily prepared meals for homebound seniors who can “ride out” storms in the comfort of their home; non-perishable meals when treacherous conditions make it impossible to reach them or if they are without power for long stretches and a fresh batch of home-delivered meals, after the storm, as soon as they can reach seniors. 

“We're the ones that are going to be boots on the ground three months from now, six months from now,” says Dana Maassen, Chief Financial Officer of Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee. “[When clients return to their homes], they still need our support — fresh produce and home-delivered meals.”

Being there on the front lines means everything to the individuals they serve.

While communities appreciate the temporary aid provided by organizations like FEMA, the Red Cross, and others, there is no substitute for organizations like Meals on Wheels. These organizations are ever-present in communities and are led and coordinated by individuals who are local community members. 

“When [a storm] comes through, that's not a need for 72 hours, that's a need for 72 days. That's a need for months,” George asserts.

George emphasizes that government agencies and other national nonprofits strategically swoop in to provide food, water and other disaster assistance during disasters. 

Yet, those entities aren’t in homes and communities daily; they aren’t the boots on the ground aware of individuals' unique needs; they aren’t on the phone conducting safety checks to ensure homebound seniors have an evacuation plan, especially seniors like client Johnny Roberts, who required a special needs shelter with power outlets for his CPAP machine, or the first to arrive post-storm with essential services. 

They can’t gather real-time information about the conditions of streets and throughways by simply picking up the phone and calling a neighborhood in an affected area. This is especially true when landlines go down due to power outages, which can last several days in severely impacted regions.

In the chaos of storm season, predictability is invaluable. “Storms are unanticipated,” George says, noting that you can’t predict the height of a storm surge, as an example.

What is predictable are organizations that can rely on routine to respond, such as routes that tell them how to reach homebound clients or where to concentrate non-perishable food drops before and after a storm.

“Emergency response people do not deliver food,” George says. “They are busy trying to get the power back on and get trees out of the way.” 

He believes investment in organizations like Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee strengthens the community on days when storms aren’t raging and fills critical gaps in emergency response plans.

“By building them up and ingraining them in the community, they become a critical part of our community,” George says. “We trust they will be there when a storm hits, which takes one thing off our plate.”

“You need strong organizations that can ramp up at the snap of a finger to help the community,” says George, mentioning the importance of organizations like Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee during disasters. “Normal organizations can't do that. You need organizations that have built trust in a community, a network in a community, a proof of concept in their ability to perform in a community, to snap their fingers and say, this storm just hit. We need to mobilize.”

Having the flexibility to operate autonomously within a community, even during a disaster, keeps local Meals on Wheels PLUS programs nimble.

“The great thing about being a smaller nonprofit is our ability to turn on a dime,” Frank says. 

The local Meals on Wheels PLUS team works quickly to bring together the leadership team, managers, and directors to contact seniors and their families and, within a day or two, hit the ground running with a fully formalized distribution plan, which is no small task.

Two years ago, during Hurricane Ian, the team did just that. Ian struck on a Thursday, and by Saturday, the team had mobilized at their headquarters and mapped out a plan to assist with rescue operations. They piled into a van to travel 27 miles southeast to Myakka City, navigating what Frank describes as “apocalyptic” conditions: flooded streets and power lines so low the fire department needed poles to raise them so the van could pass through.

Recently, through the Emergency Operations Center of Manatee County and in partnership with the Manatee Community Foundation, Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee became the hub for everything hurricane relief. Because they are so well-positioned to reach those in need, they became the go-to for the distribution of perishable and non-perishable food, cleaning supplies and more, in addition to their focus on providing home-delivered meals to seniors.

During Hurricane Milton, Maribeth Phillips, President and CEO of Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee, was determined to get the clients' meals out for the week when power returned. The team, which usually splits home-delivered meal routes into four days each week, divided and completed all 71 route assignments and meal deliveries in one day.

“When we come together for a common goal, it becomes easy because it's like-minded people,” Frank asserts with pride about the shared commitment across the team to do what’s necessary to reach clients at a moment’s notice.

This mindset is critical during crises.

While the aftermath of hurricanes is full of devastation, there are also stories of resilience—the will to rebuild communities and lives—and the comfort of knowing who you can rely on when winds rage, water levels rise, and property is displaced. 

“Our community is so resilient and willing to help people,” Frank says. “That empowers us to do what we do. It makes our job easier when we have the resources [people and financial]. We understand many people just want basic needs like shelter, clothing, food and to be cared for. We take that stuff for granted, but it's the most profound.”

For Meals on Wheels PLUS clients in Manatee County (and beyond), what makes their communities unique are the people they can rely on — the ones who know what to do or who, even when panic strikes, can call on their know-how, deep networks, passionate volunteers, and sheer devotion to figure out what needs to be done, who to reach, and how to get them.

“It’s not ‘can we do it, but how can we do it?’” Frank says.