Black River United Way adds flood recovery priority

Historic flooding in October changed the lives of thousands of people in Georgetown and Williamsburg counties and the disaster added a flood recovery priority to Black River United Way’s initiatives on improving youngsters’ reading skills and work force development / career readiness. Managing flood recovery was not in the plan for 2016, Black River president Brian Tucker says, but neither was the flooding in the plans of the thousands whose lives were disrupted.

United Way executive director Lucy Woodhouse is co-leader, with Lt. Loren Wallace of the Salvation Army, of the steering committee of the Winyah Bay Long Term Recovery Group. “It’s early in the recovery stage,” Woodhouse says. “A disaster is like a magnifying glass to a community’s housing situation.” The recovery group (LTRG) is seeing a high volume of substandard housing and a low number of available rental property.

An estimated 500 homes have been seriously damaged by the massive flooding that started Oct. 4, 2015. The general formula is a relief period of 10 times the 10 days of flooding and then the recovery period – 10 times the 100 days of relief. So Winyah Bay LTRG now is moving into the recovery process, which will continue for two years or more. The LTRG has sub-groups for case management, volunteer management, donations and fundraising, rebuild / construction and site coordination.

Geales Sands, executive director of the Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation of Pawleys Island, is leading, with Woodhouse, the fundraising group; Wallace the construction group and Kelly M. Kaminski, regional coordinator for the 10-county Pee Dee Office of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Charleston, case management. To understand the scope of the disaster in Georgetown and Williamsburg counties, Kaminski says as of the end of October, 3,516 Georgetown County and 4,977 Williamsburg residents registered with FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The numbers suggest a potential of some level of damage to 2,100 homes in Georgetown County and 3,000 in Williamsburg. This damage includes minor to major, requiring replacement of sheetrock and overhauling the interiors. Kaminski’s subgroup is in the process of a needs assessment, which entails contacting thousands of homeowners.

Woodhouse says the LTRG has $250,000 for rebuilding, including $65,000 to $70,000 from the United Way of S.C., which established a statewide fund. Black River United Way’s annual fundraising is approximately two months behind a normal year. Fundraising started in September and has raised another $50,000 in new contributions, matched by a special grant from the Bunnelle Foundation. Fundraising in 2014-15 raised the first $50,000 toward the $100,000 grant.

Black River received a grant from Americorps which enabled hiring of Donna Anderson, who is working with the state United Way. Ultimately 15 people will be hired to work in elementary schools to help K-2 pupils struggling to read at grade level. The two county school districts are working together on curriculum. “It’s really cool, exciting stuff,” Woodhouse says.

On the Career Readiness Initiative, a survey is seeking better understanding of employers’ needs and improved communication among businesses, nonprofits and the education systems (K-12 and Horry-Georgetown Technical College). Tucker, who runs Georgetown County economic development, says a better prepared workforce is “a critical need for our community.”

This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 10:11 AM with the headline "Black River United Way adds flood recovery priority."