When Hurricane Michael obliterated the panhandle of Florida, my family immediately jumped in the car to help out and assist the distribution effort for the coast. We were prepared for the devastation, but the reality of it was still incomprehensible. More so was the outpouring of volunteers and supplies— huge mountains of everything from food and soap to diapers and pet food were stacked in a church parking lot. I will never forget what the Team Leader said during our orientation: “no rationing, give them all they need, no questions.” This surprised me as I expected supply limits per carload to ensure everyone got something. In catastrophic situations, I learned, rational assumptions do not apply. We trusted the goodness of people to take only what they needed. At the end of the day, thousands of people had received tons of supplies, and we still had hundreds of boxes for tomorrow.

Our entire family pitched in for a 14-hour day.