DANVILLE, Va. – From cleanup to delivering life-saving supplies, to rebuilding after a disaster. God’s Pit Crew in Danville is gearing up for its next mission: helping those hit hardest by Tropical Storm Francine.
“Before we go on any deployment, we are always making sure our equipment is in, you know, tip-top shape,” said Chief Operating Officer Brandon Nuckles.
He says they’ve spent the past week tracking Tropical Storm Francine and talking with people on the ground in Louisiana.
“We prepare here day in and day out. We’ve actually got equipment loaded on trailers. We have sharpened our chainsaws, got our trucks loaded, and trailers packed, and volunteers are being communicated to today. And really we’re talking to people looking for the hardest hit areas to where we can make a difference,” said Knuckles.
You might know the faith-based disaster response non-profit for its famous Blessing Buckets, but Nuckles says they do so much more: from cleanup to delivering life-saving supplies to rebuilding after a disaster.
“We have volunteers that actually deploy that go out, do the chainsaw work, remove the debris, tarp rooves, muck out flooded homes,” said Nuckles.
God’s Pit Crew brings everything they need to help in the wake of disaster from chainsaws to hardhats to protect volunteers working on the scene. Debbie and Gregg Wood are two of those volunteers.
“Once we found out what they did and the extent of the things that they do, we wanted to be a part of that,” said Debbie.
Thursday, the couple helped pack Play Pails for children in the storm’s path.
“Little things in there that they would be comforted by, you know when there is a disaster,” said Debbie.
From hands-on help in Southside to boots on the ground in disaster zones, God’s Pit Crew staff say there’s a place for everyone who wants to help.
“What most people think is ‘I don’t think that there’s a spot for me. I don’t build houses. I don’t cut trees.’ But there’s a job for every single person,” said Nuckles. “We need people who are good administratively. We need people who want to come in and you know, help with preparing things that go in these buckets. We need people that just pray for our organization day in and day out. So don’t ever think that you’re not needed because God’s Pit Crew needs everybody to make this crew work.”
For more information, you can visit their website here.