Salvation Army captain returns from Puerto Rico

Spent two weeks working on Hurricane Fiona relief efforts

WARREN -- For two weeks this fall, Capt. Kiley Williams of the Salvation Army of Trumbull County helped with hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico that included making hygiene and food kits and also preparing with 25 others 800 boritos one day.

Williams was among Salvation Army staff, officers, employees and volunteers from the eastern part of the United States who spent time in late September and early October following Hurricane Fiona.

She said because she does not speak Spanish, she was not on the front lines but rather helped where needed behind the scenes preparing hot meals, hygiene kits, baby / toddler kits with diapers, boxes of food such as corn and rice, cleaning supply kits with mops and sprays, and food kits with nonperishable items.

Williams said teams would go to different locations, including the mountains, to deliver the food and the kits, following the local Salvation Army groups to the sites.

"Some of the places we helped had not had electricity for three weeks and needed supplies. This was very eye opening for me," Williams said.

Planning was done each day to provide as many as 500 hot meals, 100 hygiene kits and 100 food boxes.

Wiliams said there was a headquarter location where items were kept in a warehouse near Caguas, where the groups also stayed in dorms.

"No day was the same. I could be in the kitchen one day making hygiene kits and the next day up in the mountains distributing items. It was scary driving in some areas," Williams said.

She said people in Puerto Rico have houses that are concrete and able to withstand some storms. She said there were trees down and roofs off of buildings.

In September, the national Salvation Army had sought volunteers to help with the hurricane relief.

Williams said when she was in Puerto Rico, some of the volunteers had been there before when Hurricane Maria caused damage.

"Each day we had team meetings at 8 a.m. and were assigned a different job for the next day. There were leaders and disaster workers all working together. One day we had to do 300 food pantry boxes. We made many hygiene kits and kept having to buy toothbrushes and other items at a Sam's Club. A few of the days I was with the delivery team and went to three places to see what the people needed," Williams said.

She said the group would get up at 5 a.m. in the kitchen including one day making 800 boritos with the rice, meat and rolling the dough and then wrap them in foil.

"The people wanted Puerto Rican food, which they liked,'' Williams said.

Puerto Rico is part of the United States with many citizens speaking English.

Williams' husband Chris, also a captain at the Salvation Army in Warren, also has taken part in hurricane relief.

Williams said at one time the local Salvation Army had a team who would travel to different sites where a disaster such as flooding, tornado or fire had occurred.

"You don't want a disaster to happen but to have a team like that available would be there to help those who need something. The team would be available to go to help provide kits or whatever they can do. I would love to have that again," she said.

When the teams had free time, they traveled to parts of Puerto Rico including a cemetery where the coffins were all above ground.

"Seeing that was really new for me," she said.