Help remains available for Sarasota County homeowners dealing with damage from 2024 hurricane season
SARASOTA, Fla - A local non-profit is urging Sarasota County homeowners to reach out for help as they continue to offer assistance and recovery from the 2024 hurricane season.
Hurricane recovery funding
What we know:
The United Way of South Sarasota County has hundreds of thousands of dollars in available disaster aid.
The organization is actively seeking to help residents who have leftover damage from Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton. Disaster case managers are working through an outreach list of 59,000 local households to offer support.
Sarasota County resident Michele Good, whose carport and shed were destroyed and whose roof leaked during the storms, received unexpected help from the nonprofit after a long process with the federal relief process.
"Going through FEMA that was a very difficult process, very difficult process, but we were finally able to get some help through that," Good said. "I thought that was it. I thought I had to do the rest myself."
Voices of recovery
What they're saying:
The non-profit emphasizes that survivors do not have to navigate the recovery process alone.
"It's my job to partner with the survivor and help them distinguish what their recovery needs are and together make a realistic recovery plan, it's my job to advocate for my survivor, to connect them with community resources and to be there for them and hold their hand or give them a hug," said Michelle Tsoukarellis, a disaster case manager with the United Way of South Sarasota County.
"We still have hundreds of thousands of dollars available," said Chris Johnson, the interim CEO of the United Way of South Sarasota County. "The help is there. We just want to make sure that we let people know it is still there."
"I'm just so grateful," Good said of the outreach. "Every time she would call and say let's try to do this and get this done for you. The emotion would well up in me because I just didn't have any idea that this type of help was available to me."
Accessing local aid
What you can do:
Sarasota County residents who need assistance with leftover storm damage can call the United Way of South Sarasota County at 941-484-4811 to begin the process. Homeowners can also click here.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered by FOX 13's Kimberly Kuizon from Sarasota County resident Michele Good, who shared her personal recovery experience, as well as United Way of South Sarasota County Disaster Case Manager Michelle Tsoukarellis and Interim CEO Chris Johnson, who detailed the available funding and current community outreach efforts.