Teens give up weekends to repair Pine Island after Helene and Milton

PINE ISLAND, Fla. — Football players from Ida Baker and JORTC students from Mariner High School are volunteering their time to clean up after Hurricanes Milton and Helene.

The first cleanup stop was Kiwanis Park in Saint James City. Debris still covers the streets from Matlacha to Bokeelia. The two groups then moved into a house that needed repairs.

Steve Howard is Ida Baker’s Football Coach.

“As you drive by and you see debris everywhere, it’s just a visual part of the effects of what Milton did,” Howard says.

That’s something volunteers, including Cadet Lt. Col. Andy Seley, are trying to change.

“Pine Island never fully recovered from Hurricane Ian and then Hurricane Helene came along for more damage and then just a few weeks ago with Hurricane Milton even more damage,” Seley said.

Erin Lollar Lamber is the Executive Director of the Greater Pine Island Alliance.

“This is absolutely remarkable, these young men and women are giving of their time. Of all these kids, only 3 are actual residents of the island. Their parents drove them, their coaches brought them here to help the community,” he said. .