The North Carolina United Methodist Church Disaster Response team will depart Ocracoke in January.
The group has been on the island helping muck out homes and rebuild them since Hurricane Dorian brought a devastating flood Sept. 6, 2019.
“We ran out of money,” said Valda Belyeu, the coordinator on Ocracoke. “It’s not that we want to leave.”
The group has 12 sites in eastern North Carolina, dealing with damage from Hurricanes Matthew, Florence and Dorian, but after December only two sites will be active.
Funding comes from different sources and funding for administration is from the United Methodist Church on Relief, the overseeing body.
“UMCOR is down in funding,” she said.
But Ocracoke teams will work on homes until the end of December and then dismantle and depart in January, she said.
She was happy that the Christian Aid Ministries has come to the island.
“They can supplement our teams to get stuff finished,” she said. “We’re trying to get as much done as we can before we leave.”.
And to that end, she could still use some volunteers until mid-December.
Groups and individuals should reach out to Ocracoke Island’s Site Manager Valda Belyeu at 252-833-358 up until the middle of December.
