In the wake of Hurricane Helene, which swept through Lowndes County, local industries have rallied to support the community. After ensuring the safety of their employees, many businesses contributed to recovery efforts. 

Reflecting on the remarkable efforts of local businesses, Niki Ogletree, interim executive director of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Development Authority, praised their resilience and community spirit. “I am so proud of how they not only ensured the safety and well-being of their employees but immediately extended their support to help others in the community.”

Even though Georgia Beer Company's warehouse suffered catastrophic damage, the popular brewery rallied efforts to fill gas cans for generators, provided hot meals, including 450 spaghetti dinners, and facilitated donations to assist local nonprofits.

"In the immediate wake of the storm, we began collecting donated five-gallon cans of gas from friends and associates in Tallahassee, Miami, Thomasville, Camilla, and Albany," said Chris Jones, co-founder and Director of Business Development for Georgia Beer Company. "All together, we donated over 200 cans of gas to community members and seveal of our employees to run generators at their residences." 

Their efforts continued as they partnered with Tvelo Brewing Company and other local breweries to collect supplies, including nonperishable food, toiletries, cleaning supplies, and bottled water.

Gaining support from its corporate office, Berry Global received trailers filled with nonperishable food, water, hygiene products, and cleaning supplies. Due to extended power outages, Berry's administrative team partnered with Mobley Custom Meats to provide 173 Berry employees with fresh meat.

"Many of our employees selflessly offered to share their resources with people in greater need," said Donna McDaniel, EHS manager at Berry's Valdosta facility. "This collective effort serves as a testament to the strength and resilience of our team. It put into action our saying of 'We are ONE Berry.'"

Daniel D. Duston, plant manager at the GAF Valdosta facility, shared that the company supported their employees by providing essential resources such as generators, nonperishable food, bottled water, and hotel accommodations for those displaced by the hurricane. He also noted that GAF offered an emergency grant to assist employees with home repairs after the storm.

When GAF's Grand Opening ceremony on October 9 was postponed, the company quickly transformed the event into a Community Day. Team members joined forces with Second Harvest of South Georgia and packed 1,200 boxes for Seniors, providing 39,600, and prepared 575 backpack bags, equating to 11,200 meals for the Hungry at Home program. 

“At GAF, we are committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work, and the team here from GAF-Valdosta showed remarkable dedication to the Valdosta-Lowndes community this week,” said Dunston. “Despite some of our employees still continuing to be affected by challenges following Hurricane Helene, our team came together to provide essentials to help families here locally and throughout the Southeast - that is something we take great pride in.”

While tackling their own cleanup efforts, Wild Adventures Theme Park quickly mobilized to support the community. Team members distributed over 1,200 lunches to those in need and helped distribute essential supplies, including baby items, bottled water, flashlights, and batteries, with help from Zant's Flower & Gift Shop. To further show appreciation, Wild Adventures is offering free admission to utility line workers and first responders throughout October.

"Our team has always believed in the power of community," said Jon Vigue, Wild Adventures vice president & general manager. "Seeing how everyone came together after the storm has been incredibly inspiring. We're proud to give back in any way we can."

Checking on the welfare of its employees was a top priority for CJB Companies, which includes multiple facilities in Lowndes County. 

"We checked in with all employees to assess their safety and needs, from tree removal and helping locate generators to providing meals and helping recover belongings," said Jeana Beeland, founder and chief human resources officer at CJB Companies. "Our leadership team also conducted several assessments of our facilities to check our systems, deploy cleanup efforts, and determine a timeline that allowed employees to safely return to work."

Clinton Beeland, founder, president, and CEO of CJB Companies, added, "In helping our employees, we alleviated some of the burden on our community's essential personnel, and as we were able, we supported tree removal from roadways."

He added a note of appreciation for the community's clean-up efforts, saying, "The resiliency and can-do approach we've witnessed the past couple of weeks are incredibly inspiring."

ADM provided employees and on-site contractors with over 200 generators, air conditioning units, chainsaws, tarps, and other essential building supplies. Additionally, they offered four RVs to house displaced employees and their families. After addressing the needs of employees, ADM Cares ambassadors were sent out to the community to distribute supplies and provide assistance.

Despite experiencing a multi-day power outage, Martin's Famous Potato Rolls and Bread remained committed to aiding its employees by relaxing the attendance policy for employees needing additional assistance and providing bread and roll products for their families. The company also extended its outreach to the community by generously donating bread and roll products to several community organizations, including Second Harvest of South Georgia, Operation BBQ Relief, the Berrien County Chamber of Commerce, Redland Baptist Church, Enoch Creek Church, and Holly Hill Nursing Home.