A Helping Hand
Disasters tend to bring out the worst in some people, and those stories make the headlines, but they also bring out the best in many people who rise to the occasion to help others. For every sign warning that looters will be shot, there are people going door to door to see if their neighbors are okay. For every opportunist who swoops in to a disaster stricken area to con those who suffered losses, there are people who race in to rescue those who may be trapped or starving. For every person who seeks to make a fast buck, there’s someone giving things away for free.
When Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle it took many by surprise. The night before it arrived, residents were told it would only be a Category 2 and would likely not hit them directly. The next day people found out Michael had strengthened, and was now heading directly towards them. By the time it hit land it was a Category 5 hurricane. For those who stayed it was too late to leave, so they tried to ride out the storm doing all they could to survive.
Once the storm cleared people began trying to pick up the pieces, and many took it upon themselves to help those in need. The kind-hearted men and women of the Kingdom Impact Center, a local Panama City church, began distributing hot meals to those in need in the wake of the disaster and continued to do so six months after the storm. While we were in Panama City shooting our documentary film The Last House Standing, we had the pleasure of interviewing Pastor Lynva Masslieno as he was providing hot meals to his community.
The lead pastor of Kingdom Agenda International Ministries, Masslieno recalled the night the storm hit as he was hunkered down with his family as well as his team in the church building that once stood nearby (today only a foundation remains). When the storm ripped off the roof and the walls started to collapse they raced out to their van and came to the outreach house to ride out the rest of the storm. The outreach house survived and that’s where Masslieno and his team set up shop to start distributing hot meals to those in need. Within the first week after the disaster, hundreds of people were lining up to eat.
When asked why he and his team decided to stick around and help those in need, Masslieno explained that it was done out of a love for people.
In high spirits, Pastor Masslieno recalled the gratitude with which he and his team were met as we interviewed him on a sunny Florida day with a gentle breeze coming through. When asked if he would have stayed had he known how bad the storm would get, Masslieno said “Definitely not” then joked that if the wind picked up any more right now he’d evacuate.
When asked if people have to rebuild differently Masslieno said, “Not only are we going have to rebuild differently, but we’re going have to have a completely different outlook on life. We’re going to rebuild lives differently. Rebuild structures differently as well.” He went on to describe one of the more poignant things that stood out to him after the storm, “Hurricane Michael leveled the playing field for everyone. It was people just being people. People checking on people. Hey listen, are you okay? Can I do something for you?’ So just for a few weeks everybody was on the same playing field. You had rich, you had poor, you had young, old, white, black, different nationalities, all of that. Everyone was on a level playing field.”
The selflessness displayed by Masslieno and his team at the Kingdom Impact Center is proof that tragedy can bring out the best in people. Pastor Masslieno showed us that even in the darkest of times there can be hope, and that the Panama City community is strong. Panama City may have been decimated, but their spirit is unbroken.