• Michelle Hartfield

Labor of Love: The Salvation Army Continues Feeding after Hurricane Ian

Chrissy Arambasich is a labor and delivery nurse at a hospital in Fort Myers, Florida. She was on duty the night Hurricane Ian tore through the area. Not even record-breaking hurricanes can stop babies from being born.

Through tears, Chrissy spoke about struggling to care for others when you do not know if your own family is safe. “I work with amazing people. We took care of our patients, and then we took care of each other whenever we had a chance.”

The hospital parking lots flooded, and every person on shift that night lost their car. Chrissy’s family made it through the storm safely, but their house is no longer habitable. They are staying with her in-laws who live close enough to the hospital that she can walk to work with no car.

Chrissy and her family stopped for lunch and dinner from The Salvation Army canteen stationed on their street. “I’m just so thankful my friends and family are safe,” Chrissy cried. Her husband put his arm around her and added, “We haven’t had a hot meal in a week. This is so amazing.”

Before heading home with their meals, Chrissy and her family prayed with an Emotional Spiritual Care specialist from The Salvation Army.

“We have always given to The Salvation Army, and we never thought we would be the ones needing help," she said. "I don’t know how long my kids will be out of school, but we will definitely be trying to volunteer. We want to support the people who have supported us.”

The Salvation Army will continue their efforts to reach neighborhood where people have not had access to food or supplies. To date, over 16,000 meals and 15,000 drinks have been served. With an incident command fully established, The Salvation Army intends to ramp up meal service in the coming days. 

To support The Salvation Army's Hurricane Ian relief efforts, donate at http://helpsalvationarmy.org or 1-800-SAL-ARMY.