Gift Industry Unites for Hurricane Relief: Rebuilding After Helene and Milton

After Hurricanes Helene and Milton struck Western North Carolina and Florida, the gift industry is stepping up to provide crucial support.

 

Heart on Main Street offers disaster relief grants to independent retailers harmed by natural disasters. If your business was affected, you can apply for assistance here. Founded in 2022, by Patrick Keiser, Heart on Main Street’s mission is to provide knowledge, resources, and connections to independent retailers to help them evolve and thrive in an ever-changing economy and to help create more sustainable Main Street businesses in our local communities. A healthy Main Street is vital to a healthy community, and by supporting these businesses, we can create stronger local economies and communities. Learn more about their mission and donate to help fellow retailers rebuild here.

 

Gift for Life is working with World Central Kitchen to raise funds for disaster recovery. Gift for Life was founded in 1992 by Peter Schauben, along with a small group of industry friends in response to the tragic loss of industry lives to AIDS.  Since then, Gift for Life has raised nearly $6M for AIDS research and education, and HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. After COVID-19 hit the nation hard, Gift for Life responded by adding the Hunger Crisis to its list of initiatives and now also raises money for World Central Kitchen. This organization provides rapid aid to help feed those in need affected by natural disasters. Support their efforts here.

 

Your contribution, large or small, can make a real difference in helping communities recover, as Reps Are Local Too demonstrated.  Road Runners Western North Carolina’s independent sales rep Julia Kelley took matters into her own hands. After Helene, Julia asked if they could come to the showroom and gather life essential samples like soaps and lotions from the showroom sample area to send to Western NC. Along with her fellow Atlanta-based rep, Susan Jack, they gathered life essentials and food supplies. The collection didn’t stop there; our friends at Darrah & Company and Just Got 2 Have It! sprung into action and contributed from their supplies, too. Together, they helped stuff this truck leaving McDonough, Georgia headed to Western North Carolina. 

 

A contribution, large or small, can make a real difference in helping communities recover, as demonstrated by the Reps are Local Too. After Helene, Road Runners’ Western North Carolina rep, Julia Kelley, and Atlanta-based rep, Susan Jack, rallied together, gathering life-essential items like soaps and lotions from showroom samples. Darrah & Company and Just Got 2 Have It! also contributed supplies. Together, they filled a truck with essentials and food, sending it from McDonough, Georgia, to aid recovery efforts in Western NC.

 

The gift industry is mobilizing to support recovery efforts after Hurricanes Helene and Milton devastated Western North Carolina and Florida. Organizations like Heart on Main Street and Gift for Life showcase the industry’s commitment to supporting local economies, local retailers, and helping communities recover from disaster.

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