Budge Huskey, CEO of Premier Sotheby’s International Realty, in Naples, was traveling out of state when Hurricane Ian hit his home base of Naples, Florida. While he and his wife were spared from the driving rains and winds, his home was not — it was under seven feet of water, effectively destroying the ground floor.
In a Facebook post, he said, “I’ve had some unpleasant days, and this one is right up there. Our neighborhood looks like a scene from Armageddon time with boats, cars, and possessions scattered about. Dragging out all your personal belongings from the first floor of your home is not something for the faint of heart — every document, every photo taken before the digital age. It just feels like you’re throwing out a part of yourself,” he said.
Despite knowing he was coming home to disaster, he immediately went to work checking on the agents in his company. In an interview with RealTrends days after the storm, he says, “We have approximately 1,500 advisors, team members and staff. And we have diligently been reaching out to everybody. Amazingly, so far, we have no reported deaths and no reported injuries.” However, the property damage was devastating.
Keller Williams steps in
Days after Hurricane Ian blasted through Florida, Marc King, president of Keller Williams was on a plane visiting their agents in the impacted areas. Because the Naples airport was still closed, King had to fly into Sarasota and make the drive south. “I’m a faith-based person, and my phone update had me avoid major highways. But, it sent me straight into the hardest hit parts during my three-hour trip to Keller William’s command center,” says King.
“To see the devastation and the local leaders stepping up to help was highly emotionally for me,” he says. Among others, King visited a Keller Williams agent who was only able to salvage 10% of her belongings. “We’ve had several offices completely wiped away.”
KW Cares, Keller Williams’ foundation, immediately stepped in and at the time of this reporting, had already “given out 492 generators in the region that was affected. We have approved 322 emergency grants of up to $5,000 each, for a total of 1.1 5 million. And we have approved services to about 60 homes, which includes either putting a tarp on people’s roofs to further mitigate any rain damage, remove trees from properties and more,” says Alexia Rodriguez, CEO of KW Cares.
More than anything, both Huskey and King were humbled by the community support. “Agents whose own homes were damaged were out helping others in the community,” says Huskey. And, it didn’t matter the company or brand, the community came together to help one another.
If you are interested in donating to help victims of Hurricane Ian, HW Media is offering an opportunity to do so.
Our mission at HWMedia is moving markets forward. Natural disasters, like Hurricane Ian, impact homeowners and housing professionals, alike. Please join HW and your fellow housing leaders from across the nation to raise money to support those who are impacted by Hurricane Ian in Florida. The proceeds from each item purchased will be donated to the Florida Realtors Disaster Relief Fund.
