Greenwood couple delivers donations to hurricane victims

By Valorie Brecht In the wake of a devastating storm such as a hurricane, people can feel paralyzed by the enormous need, knowing they won’t be able to help everyone. However, every positive action makes a difference for at least one person.

“We felt God put it on our hearts to go help the less fortunate,” said Nan Sowieja of rural Greenwood. “We’ve always been into volunteer work and helping people, and we really felt a pull to do this.”

She and her husband John recently took a 28-foot-long trailer full of donations to northeastern Tennessee to be distributed to victims of Hurricance Helene. Jen Petke traveled along with them to help. They left Monday, Oct. 7, and came back a week later.

“My husband and I have done lots of volunteer work over the years, but this was definitely the most rewarding and also the most heartbreaking. You can’t prepare yourself for what you’re going to see,” said Nan.

After hearing about the devastation left by the Category 4 storm and feeling that pull to help, Nan and John jumped into action. The whole thing came together rather quickly. Initially, Nan simply searched “Hurricane Helene” online and found a Facebook group where people were sharing needs they had and others were sharing what items they could bring. On Friday afternoon, Oct. 4, Nan put together some information and published it on Facebook, telling people that she and her husband would be collecting donations at the Greenwood Kwik Trip that Sunday afternoon. She also talked to her church and had it announced on Sunday morning. Word quickly spread online, with Nan’s original post being shared 55 times.

The central Wisconsin community showed up in a big way, donating clothes, blankets and sleeping bags, food, baby formula, diapers and other supplies. Nan said she received donations from people in Greenwood, Loyal, Neillsville, Spencer, Colby, Thorp, Eau Claire, Willard, Marshfield, Pittsville, Dorchester and Medford, and she might have forgotten someone.

As an example of the community’s generosity, a donor who wishes to remain anonymous gave a large donation that enabled the Sowiejas to purchase 100 LifeStraws that were delivered to a field

Please see Donations to hurricane victims, page 3

People from central Wisconsin came together to fill this 28-foot trailer full of clothing, food and other essentials that John and Nan Sowieja then delivered to hurricane victims in Tennessee.

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hospital. Nan also received some Venmo donations from friends in Colorado.

“It was very overwhelming, how generous people were,” said Nan. “Originally we planned to just fill a smaller trailer, but then we kept hearing from people that ‘Oh, I’m bringing this’ or ‘I’m bringing that,’ and we’re like, ‘We’re going to need a bigger trailer.’ It was very overwhelming, but very incredible to see… This little area filling that trailer was absolutely phenomenal.”

Nan, John and Jen left early that Monday morning to deliver the donations. However, they ran into a few roadblocks along the way. They had planned to deliver the donations to a Catholic church in North Carolina. However, officers were stopping people at the border and not letting anyone into the state. Then Nan found a YMCA in eastern Tennessee that had been accepting donations. She called the YMCA later on Monday to make sure they were still taking donations, but they said no because they already had way too many. So, Nan took to the internet for some assistance. She messaged the Facebook group she had been following for hurricane help, saying she was coming from Wisconsin with a trailer full of donations; is there anyplace that could use the help? She got several responses and eventually got information for a distribution center in Piney Flats, Tenn. They unloaded their donations there, with some going on a Penske Truck to be taken to a rural area and further distributed by motorcycle, horse or ATV. In some remote areas, the roads were all flooded so people couldn’t get down from the mountains, so volunteers brought the donations to them.

“I didn’t personally see this, but I heard stories from other volunteers of things like a baby with its mom that had no diaper or clothes on, and children running around naked. It’s a very poor area, so they were not in a good place to begin with, and then this happened,” said Nan.

She and her husband and Jen did what they could to assist. John spent the first day using his chainsaw to clear roads. He and Jen then spent most of their time working on cadaver operations with local first responders, looking through 24-foot rubble with dogs to try and find bodies.

Nan traveled with Faith Staut, a lady she was staying with, to deliver supplies to people in need around Hartford, Tenn., including linemen, telephone workers and other utility workers. They were also part of a seven-truck caravan to Del Rio, Tenn., which was mostly wiped out. They delivered supplies to a church that was untouched in that area.

While viewing the devastation, Nan and John met a single mom, Katie, and her 6-year-old daughter Chloe who were living in a trailer park. Katie and Chloe were rescued in the middle of the night in a raft. While getting into the raft, they suffered chemical burns from the toxic water.

Katie’s trailer was one of six trailers left standing of about 20 trailers in the whole park. The trailer had water from the flooding coming up through holes in the trailer. There were also rats coming in. The Sowiejas felt called to help this lady and her daughter. They got her some food, hygiene products and a new bike for the daughter. They also installed a washing machine and air purifier, and took care of the rat problem.

“We found one family to hone in on and decided to focus on them. I am keeping in touch with Katie,” Nan said. “She just sobbed when talking with us because she couldn’t believe we would take the time to help her.”

“The people who have been affected feel very overwhelmed by what has happened and feel very forgotten, so they are very appreciative… My phrase for this has been ‘Americans helping Americans’ because I want people to know they’re not forgotten,” she added.

She said it was neat to see people from so many places coming to help. At a Baptist church that served as a volunteer gathering point, Nan met volunteers from Colorado, Oklahoma, Oregon and Michigan, including a couple with two homeschooled children who brought a freezer full of meat and cooked up burgers for utility workers, hurricane victims and volunteers. The church also helped to supply meals. Nan also has a teacher friend in Colorado whom she put in touch with Chloe’s school. They will be doing a book drive and serving as pen pals for Chloe’s class.

Nan was grateful for the glimpses of hope she saw in the midst of pain and loss, and thanked the community for its support.

“I thank everyone for the donations, prayers, support and love — it was incredible. We feel very, very blessed to have been able to do this,” she said.

She also thanked Paul Staut, a Greenwood native, and his wife Faith for graciously allowing herself, John and Jen to stay with them.

She asked that people continue to pray for the victims of Hurricane Helene, because they have suffered so much.

The Sowiejas are planning another trip down to help in about a month and will be collecting donations again. They will find out what items are most needed closer to when they go, because needs continually change. People should watch the “Community of Greenwood” Facebook page for updates or contact Nan at 970-379-4528.

People can also donate monetarily through Samaritan’s Purse by visiting SamaritansPurse.org or by calling 828-262-1980. For information about volunteer opportunities, call 828-678-1935.

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