ENGLEWOOD — The Englewood Chamber of Commerce accepted a check from the Lighthouse Methodist Church of Boca Grande this weekend as members viewed a hurricane swept Stewart Street in Englewood.
The $88,000 donation is for the Englewood Hurricane Relief Fund, according to Chamber Director Doug Izzo.
“We’re here to hopefully bring some good news to the area,” Izzo said.
Jim Ford, a resident on the street since 1999, was heavily affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The fund will help people like Ford get back on their feet and begin recovery efforts.
“Unfortunately, we’re getting good at this kind of thing,” Izzo said. “After spending two years rebuilding from Hurricane Ian, we unfortunately were knocked back down again by two back to back hurricanes both Helene and Milton.”
After seeing the effects of both Helene and Milton on Englewood, members of the Lighthouse Methodist Church of Boca Grande congregation knew they needed to help.
“As a member of a wonderful, generous congregation, our mission committee is often the the point of the spear when it comes to assistance on an ongoing basis,” Co-Chair of the Lighthouse Church Mission Committee Peter Soderberg said. “We really very quickly, in this past week, zeroed in on Englewood.”