Sunday Service Oct 21st – Our RE Director, Gienah Harris, will be at UUFBC to hold a modified Sunday Service.  If you can, please come and share your joys and concerns of the past 12 days.  Be in community with other members and friends that are going through trying times also.  We will meet at our regular time of 10:30 and there will most likely be no electric, water, or potty facilities.  Parking may also be a challenge as our regular entrance is blocked with downed trees.  The property can be accessed by the exit on Lisenby.  Folks can probably park in the shopping center that is located next door on Lisenby.  

Sharing Our Facility – UUFBC is glad to have Mutual Aid Disaster Relief working out of our grounds and facility to provide supplies to those most in need.  They are also assisting when they can in doing some cleanup efforts around the grounds.  To read their story click here.

Building and Grounds Update – Our main building appears to have received some minor damage which appears to be from wind driven rain and the tree damage to our property has been extensive.  There are probably 25+ trees that are down and blocking the main entrance.  Parking on the front of our property is blocked by down trees and debris.  Professional tree removal will be needed. (Pictures are posted on our Facebook page thanks to Gianna Phelps and Gienah Harris, our RE Director)

There will be no electric service for some time, which means our AC, well and septic system will not be available until electric service is restored.  Our Email, website, and phone can all be monitored remotely through cloud access.

Our out buildings that were accommodating our RE classes have structural damage from fallen trees.  Rain from the hurricane has also caused damage to the contents of the buildings.  Our Little Red School house was also knocked off of its tie-down foundation.  The building will have to be examined to determine if they can be repaired.

An insurance claim has been filed with Church Mutual and we are awaiting an inspection by an insurance adjuster.  Our RE buildings are only covered for liability.

Member Update – Steve Dixon, Tiffany Sapp and Cheryl Kellogg have been tracking down members and regular attending friends.  We are still not in contact with a few.  We realize that some of these my have evacuated to safer areas or have no means of communicating their whereabouts.  We still would like to hear from the following: Cliff Myers and Harriett Myers. We hope they will check in with UUFBC or if anyone has been in contact with any of these folks, could you please let Steve know by Facebook or message him.

Report Damages & Needs– Steve Dixon (beaux@mail.com) is compiling a data base of damages and needs for members and regular friends of the fellowship.  Please contact him with any requests for help that you may have.  We have been contacted by several Florida UU fellowships that would like to offer assistance.  The Southen UU District may also be able to give assistance.  We realize that many folks still have not returned to their homes or do not have access to communication.  When you do have needs in mind, please reach out and we will try and help.

Communications – Cheryl Kellogg will be regularly monitoring: info@uuofbaycounty.com  If you have questions or need other help, please contact our official email and your questions will be answered or directed to others that may be able to help.

Housing Offer  – We have had several offers of housing.  If anyone is interested in finding a temporary housing alternative please contact Steve Dixon.

 

 

FEMA ASSISTANCE

To apply for FEMA assistance visit: www.disasterassistance.gov or call 1-800-621-FEMA (1-800-621-3362) TTY: 1-800-462-7585. To find the nearest FEMA Disaster Recovery Center visit: https://egateway.fema.gov/ESF6/ DRCLocator

EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE

If you need emergency help call 9-1-1.

BASIC SUPPLIES

If you need supplies, such as food, water, or ice, please contact your county emergency management at: http://www.floridadisaste r.org/fl_county_em.asp or by phone at (850) 815-4001 for the location of the nearest distribution center. Your county emergency management can provide up-to-date information about shelters and local distribution centers for food and supplies.

HELP FOR SENIORS

If you know of a senior who needs assistance call the Florida Department of Elder Affairs hotline at 1-800-96-ELDER (1-800-963-5337). To report elder abuse, call 1-800-96-ABUSE (1-800-962-2873).

HELP FOR VETERANS

Veterans in need of assistance or in need of their medication can contact the Veteran Disaster Hotline at 1-800-507-4571 or go to any VA medical facility for assistance.

MENTAL HEALTH

If you or someone you know is experiencing emotional distress please call the Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746 to connect with a trained counselor. You may also visit: http://bit.ly/2vH2Huc for more information about managing stress after a disaster and talking with children about traumatic events.

DIALYSIS

To find a dialysis center in your area visit: http://www.dialysisunits.com/. Patients of DaVita Dialysis may contact 1-800-400-8331 to find the nearest Dialysis Center.

MORTGAGE RELIEF

To find out if you qualify for temporary mortgage relief, visit the Freddie Mac website at:http://www.freddiem ac.com/about/hurricane-relief.html , the Fannie Mae website at:http://www .fanniemae.com/portal/about-fm/hurricane-relief.html or by phone at 1-800-2FANNIE (800-232-6643). To contact the Federal Housing Finance Agency visit:https://www.fhfa.gov/Homeownersbuyer/MortgageA ssist ance/ Pages /Disa ster-Assistance.aspx

You may also contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to find out if you qualify for any hurricane related help with your mortgage or mortgage insurance. To contact HUD about disaster assistance visit: https://www. hud.gov/program_offices/housing/sfh/ins/203h-dft or https://www. hud.gov/program_offices/housing/sfh/nsc/qaho0121

TAX RELIEF

Taxpayers in affected areas may be eligible for tax relief from the IRS. To learn more about IRS assistance visit: https://ww w.irs.gov/newsroom/tax-relief-in-disaster-situations.

DISASTER RECOVERY LOANS

The U.S. Small Business Administration is providing various disaster loans to qualifying Floridians. For more information about SBA disaster loans visit:https://www.sba.gov/disaster-ass istance/. The U.S. Department of Agriculture provides loans to qualifying individuals, businesses, and communities after disasters. For more information visit: https://www.usda.gov/topics/d isaster/storms, or contact the USDA office in Florida at: (352) 338-3400.

DISASTER UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE

Floridians who are unemployed as a result of a disaster, and who are ineligible for regular state unemployment insurance, are encouraged to apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) through the U.S. Department of Labor. For additional information about DUA visit: https://workfo rcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/disaster.asp or contact the U.S. Department of Labor by phone at 1-866-487-2365.

HURRICANE RESPONSE HIRING

The U.S. Small Business Administration is hiring a variety of temporary positions located throughout areas affected by recent disasters. For more information visit:https://www.sba.gov/disaster-assistance/hurrican e-res ponse -jobs -sba< /a>. For FEMA hiring visit: https://careers.fema.gov/hur ricane-workforce.

FEMA ASSISTANCE

For in-person assistance with storm related questions, visit your local FEMA Disaster Recovery Center. For a list of centers in your area visit: https://egateway.fema.gov/ESF6/ DRCLocator or call 1-800-621-FEMA (1-800-621-3362) TTY: 1-800-462-7585.

Be aware of SCAMS: Federal and state workers never ask for or accept money, and always carry identification badges. There is no fee required to apply for or to get disaster assistance from FEMA, or the State of Florida. If you suspect fraud call FEMA’s Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721, or the Florida Attorney General fraud hotline at 1-866-966-7226.

RESOURCES

Emergency Assistance 9-1-1

Local resources (food, shelter, childcare,) 2-1-1

Food, water, ice distribution https://www.floridadisaster.org/, 850-815-4001, TDD/TTY: 1-800-226-4329

County Emergency Management Offices https://www.floridadisaster.org /counties/

Shelters www.floridadisaster.org/sh elter-status/

Florida Highway Conditions: www.flhsmv.gov/f hp/traffic/live_traffic_feed.html, or dial 5-1-1 or *FHP (347)

Florida Elder Affairs Hotline 1-800-96-ELDER (1-800-963-5337)http://elderaffairs.state.fl.us/

Veteran Disaster Hotline www.va.gov, 1-800-507-4571

Disaster Distress Helpline (for emotional distress) 1-800-985-5990, or text TalkWithUs to 66746

Blue Tarp Roofs (Army Corps of Engineers) 1-888-ROOF-BLU

FEMA www.disasterassistance.gov, 1-800-621-FEMA (1-800-621-3362) TTY: 1-800-745-0243

CONTACT BILL

For assistance, contact me by visiting my website at: www.BillNelson.senate.gov, by phone toll free in Florida at 1-888-671-4091, or stop by any of my offices.