AT&T Doesn’t Have to Look Far for Inspiration to Support #SCFlood Relief

Story and photo by: Jay Bonafede, American Red Cross

Since the day the floods began across South Carolina in early October, the support area businesses and organizations have shown for this community has been overwhelming. Many of these companies have come in to their local Red Cross office to deliver their generous donations to help the people of South Carolina in person. When AT&T officials brought an amazing $50,000 gift into the Central South Carolina Chapter in Columbia, they also brought along a special visitor.

(L-R) Ted Creech, AT&T Director of External Relations in South Carolina;
Tiffanie Spencer, AT&T Retail Associate;
Pamela Lackey, AT&T State President for South Carolina;
Beth Shwedo, American Red Cross of Central SC Board Chair;
Louise Welch Williams, American Red Cross Palmetto SC Regional CEO;
Don Cheeks, American red Cross of Central SC Board Member.

“My husband just met with the Red Cross this morning,” said Tiffanie Spencer, a Retail Associate with AT&T. On the morning of Sunday, October 4, life changed for Spencer and her family.

“Our son woke us up at about 3:30am and said, ‘it’s flooding’,” she says. “I looked out the window, the water was already above the top of my car tire. My husband checked in the basement. Wow, the water was rushing in so fast. Within about 30 minutes, our couches and fridge were floating.”

Spencer and her family were able to evacuate safely, and after staying with friends and in a hotel for about a week, they have moved into a new apartment. They were able to save some of their clothing and bedroom furniture from upstairs, but even their mattresses and box springs were too damp to salvage.

Spencer left the Central SC Chapter Wednesday morning with a Red Cross clean-up kit in hand to help salvage what she can, but the road to recovery will be a long one for Tiffanie and her family. The Red Cross caseworkers her husband met with earlier in the day will be there to support them along the way, including help in creating long-term recovery plans, navigating paperwork and locating available resources. Thanks in large part to the generosity of companies like Spencer’s own employers at AT&T.