Living in FL, I am practically as qualified as a meteorologist to let ya know what someone surviving a hurricane needs- and wants.
The absolute WORST is when you are ok, but your friends an hour away aren’t. Here are some things we did to help our FL neighbors after Hurricane Irma and the community efforts we coordinated to help far away Texans after Harvey:
If you are NEAR, but okay:
1 driving water to them! It is sooo hard to find a store with water left! And road trips are friendship builders for you!
2 delivering any food that is FRESH! Canned, packaged, and processed foods get tiresome and all you want is a salad (I know, but trust me)
3 If you cant make a drive, donate it to your local church or high school or red cross group effort and they will bring it
4 Be HANDS ON!! Help clear trees, volunteer to rebuild houses, ask your local government if they need volunteers (usually through FEMA)
If you are FAR:
1 donating to the Red Cross or another charity known for relief efforts
2 ship food, water, first aid supplies to a nearby area
3 coordinate an order for rebuilding materials with a hardware store
4 sending toys to a nearby organization- most of those kids’ toys were probably ruined and their families likely cannot afford to replace them all with the holidays coming up
Literally ANYTHING you can think of can help! Just find an organization or group to work with and fulfill your volunteer hours for the year.