SMALL MISS. COMMUNITY RAISES $100K

RIENZI, Miss. — When Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina and east Tennessee last fall, Brandon Moore felt called to help. The Rienzi farmer and trucking company owner didn’t know his small Mississippi community would rally to donate more than $100,000 worth of supplies.

“I saw it was devastating. So I started praying about it, asking God, ‘What could I do to help?’” Moore said.

After researching relief organizations, Moore contacted God’s Warehouse through Mississippi’s Northeast Baptist Association. When he asked what was needed most, the response was clear: generators.

Moore made a Facebook post saying he would try to collect “a little small pickup load of generators.” Within 24 hours, community donations poured in, enough to buy about 20 generators.

But Moore felt called to do more.

“I was trying to figure out how much would fit on a full 48-foot 18-wheeler, because we have a little small trucking company,” Moore said. A full trailer could fit 150 generators.

“I went ahead and committed because God was like, ‘We’re going to take care of this. This is going to happen,’” he said. “At this point, we were a long ways from our goal on money, but money was still trickling in a little bit at a time.”

Moore’s wife began collecting toys for children affected by the hurricane. After posting about the toy drive on Facebook, people brought brand-new toys that filled two large crates.

When Moore learned the relief organization also needed extension cords, he committed to providing all 150 needed.

Still short several dozen generators, Moore spoke at his church about the effort.

“That Sunday morning — now this is how God works — our church paid for 15 generators,” Moore said. “I’m talking about people that didn’t have the extra money to give, but they bought one or two generators and didn’t have the money to do it, but their heart was in the right place.”

After the service, Moore received a call from a friend at a neighboring church.

“As soon as I get in from church — I don’t even get my Sunday clothes changed yet — the phone rings,” Moore said. “He says, ‘Brandon, people seen your post. We want to know what we can do.’ I said, ‘Man, whatever God lays on your heart to do.’ He said, ‘We want to purchase 20 generators.’”

A local insurance agent also donated to the effort, and contributions continued pouring in.

The final shipment included generators, power cords, blankets, sleeping bags, four boxes of toys and about 200 Bibles. Moore’s truck drivers volunteered to deliver the supplies for free.

When the relief organization asked if Moore knew where to find donated lumber, he made a few calls and arranged for two truckloads (about 96,000 pounds total). The first load was purchased with community donations, while the second was completely donated by a local company.

“We gave our little community, which God gave it, but by bringing all those people together, over $100,000 worth of stuff,” Moore said.

“For a little small community like ours, to me, when you ask God to help you, there ain’t nothing He can’t do,” he said. “This is all God’s doing. It’s not nothing I’ve done. God just kind of put me in charge of it.” B&R