Lord’s Warehouse works to reopen next year after Hurricane Helene

Shelves of second-hand shoes and racks of donated clothes were toppled on the floor. Glass from rare china and other household items were spread through the racks covered in mud. 

Unique jewelry on the bottom shelves of the display cases started to rust only a week later. The water line was evident on the wall, showing the 4 feet of water that flooded in. 

Longboat Island Chapel members said it looked like someone had broken in, but really, it was Hurricane Helene that robbed Longboat Key of its favorite thrift store.

Eight weeks later, the Lord’s Warehouse at the Chapel is found empty of its numerous donations from residents and gutted from its shelves and appliances.

Photo by Petra Rivera

Senior Manager of the Lord’s Warehouse Valerie Evanko said its volunteers are working around the clock for a hopeful reopening in February. 

“As we look more into the structure of the building and how it was damaged, the costs continue to mount,” said Evanko. “But we are committed to reopening because of how many nonprofits who depend on us.”

While little of its profits go to church expenses, the Lord’s Warehouse focuses on benefiting the 12 nonprofits partnered with the Chapel’s charitable outreach committee. Evanko said they only keep about half of the donations to sell in the store. 

This money goes to the committee to buy donations for the nonprofits and host its monthly charity social hour, Gather and Give. At this event, church members bring donations for a specific charity while mingling with its leaders and learning more about how they can help them. The warehouse’s profits also go to the upkeep of the store.

The other half of its merchandise are sorted and donated to local charities such as Stillpoint Mission in Bradenton. Evanko said they give away around 40 bags of clothes each month. 

In Hurricane Helene, the flooding ruined about 75% of the merchandise in its building and storage shed. Evanko said this affected all the bottom shelves, cabinets and racks. The standing racks were knocked down by the water coming in. The warehouse also lost its $8,000 air conditioner.  

After assessing the damage, it was concluded the warehouse needed to be completely gutted. As this process began, termites were discovered underneath the damaged sheetrock, which resulted in the store having to be mitigated.

Photo by Petra Rivera

With drywall replaced, the plan is to install a new air conditioner, wall boards and cabinets as well as treatment for termites. Evanko didn’t specify the costs of the repairs. Volunteers are needed to help paint, build new shelves and clean its racks. 

They are hoping to reopen Feb. 1, but that is not set in stone. Because of this, the annual March fashion show is canceled. 

“We do feel blessed to be safe after the storms because, at the end of the day, it's just stuff we lost,” said Evanko. “We do really need volunteers and donations to build back up our inventory, but we are going to be back and better than ever soon enough.”