Hurricane Florence: MANNA’s Response and How You Can Help

*We will keep this page updated.*

What MANNA Is Doing

MANNA is working with food banks across the storm-affected regions in North and South Carolina in a coordinated effort to help alleviate the impacts from Hurricane Florence.

We are working very closely with our sister food banks to help provide the most needed resources, including strategically deploying members of our staff to support their efforts in the most devastated areas. We, along with our sister food banks, are very sensitive to the fact that there will be both short and longer terms needs and we will continue to partner with them throughout the recovery efforts.

In our local communities who experienced flooding and other damage, we are working very closely with our local partner agencies to stay abreast of their specific needs as they unfold. We will keep our supporters informed.

How You Can Help

IMMEDIATE NEEDS

Funding Support

The most helpful thing you can do is donate funds. Money can be easily directed to where it is most needed, and to what is most needed. Additionally, monetary donations also support a local economy experiencing a temporary crisis.

Truly, the most environmentally friendly, cost-effective, efficient and best way for the public outside of the affected areas to help is with funds rather than buying food locally so it has to be shipped into the devastated areas.

Your financial donation helps put experienced disaster responders on the ground, and gives them the resources they need to help survivors recover. Organizations typically prefer cash donations because they allow organizations to:

• Purchase the needed food, water, medicine, and equipment from secure and familiar supply chains.
• Buy materials locally. This can help rebuild the local economy.
• Conserve resources. Money is always necessary and cheap to send, but the cost to ship material supplies can be expensive.

Any donations to MANNA will be used on a most-needed basis to support our food bank partners’ relief efforts following the storm.

DONATE NOW

Food and Supply Donations

Food and supply donations made to MANNA will primarily be used in WNC-affected areas first, and other regional areas as requested by our food bank partners. Please note that shipping donations to affected areas is not the most cost-effective way to help, and consider finding a local organization in the regions affected, to make a donation that can have a bigger, and more effective impact.

Accepted donation items:

• Water
• Handheld snacks
• Pop top entrees
• Personal hygiene supplies
• Cleaning supplies

Donate Supplies via Amazon

Amazon has partnered with Feeding America and the American Red Cross to provide an easy way for people who are looking to donate supplies to regions affected. This is an easy way to donate needed supplies straight from your smartphone or computer. (Please keep in mind that these supplies are priced at retail prices; donating cash directly means that food banks can purchase their needed supplies in bulk and therefore, stretch your dollars much farther.)

MANNA’s Emergency Needs Text Alert

If you are interested in being informed of any needs relating to MANNA’s physical location, needs in our immediate Western North Carolina community, or donation item needs, please sign up for our Emergency Needs Text Alerts by texting the word READY to 828-348-5883.

Where to Get Help

If you need emergency support in Western North Carolina, please refer to this list of our partner agencies who are welcoming evacuees, providing some supplies, and other ways of helping.

Useful Links

North Carolina Shelter Locations
North Carolina Road Conditions
North Carolina County Emergency Management Agencies