Mattamy Homes, the parent company of Wellen Park, a top-selling master-planned community located near North Port, is doing their part to help with Hurricane Ian relief efforts. The home-building company recently presented the American Red Cross with a significant donation of $800,000 to assist communities across Florida impacted by the storm.

While there is no one organization that can really capture all the needs that someone would have during a disaster, the Red Cross provides a piece of the puzzle, whether it's groceries for the month, a hotel stay, or basic necessities. According to Kristin Burke, chief development officer for the Central, Florida region of the American Red Cross, “Our teams that work directly with folks that have been in our shelters are coordinating what some of those specific needs might be. It’s not life-changing money but it helps people on their road to recovery. The Mattamy donation went to serve specifically our relief efforts for all of the work that we did during Hurricane Ian.” At the peak of the hurricane relief operations, the Red Cross had over 100 emergency response vehicles (ERVs) delivering food and clean-up kits. “It costs us about $25,000 to fully operate one ERV and that is just one example of how donations like the one from Mattamy can be helpful,” she adds.

“We’re so blessed to have a founder of the Mattamy company, Peter Gilgan, who puts value in time, talent and treasure. And for him, he put a portion of his treasure toward an area that needs it the most. But more importantly, that treasure can be compounded by going to a group like the American Red Cross, who can do far more with it than what any one of us could do singularly if somebody handed that check to us,” says Rick Severance, Wellen Park division president, Mattamy Homes. “Beyond our area, we know that so many others throughout the state have been impacted by the storm. We value the Red Cross and what they do most effectively, which is their ability to strategically place and prioritize funds based on need.”

“The Mattamy donation is supporting families from Collier County up into Fort Myers all the way up and over and around the I-4 corridor over to Daytona, and that is huge. It's a significant portion of Florida that was affected by the hurricanes this season,” says Eric Corliss, chief executive officer, for the Central Florida and U.S. Virgin Islands regions of the American Red Cross. "There are tens of thousands of people that are better off and that were cared for and didn’t go through the aftermath of being alone because of the generosity of Mattamy.”

“We have donors of every kind, some who will give their last $5.00 for the week, all the way up to donations like the one from Mattamy,” shares Burke. “It takes a collective effort and Mattamy has certainly been a leader in that charge.”

To make a donation to the American Red Cross, click here.