Stories of Hope: Meet the People Supporting Communities on the Climate Frontlines

The storms are getting stronger. The floods are arriving faster. The recovery is taking longer.

Across the globe, climate-driven disasters are intensifying and the communities least responsible for the crisis are often the ones bearing the greatest cost. The most damaging hurricanes are now three times more frequent than they were a century ago. The proportion of major Atlantic hurricanes has doubled since 1980. Nine of the ten years with the highest number of billion-dollar disasters have occurred in the past decade.

When those disasters hit, hunger follows. Roads flood. Power goes out. Grocery stores close. Supply chains break down. And families are left asking the most urgent question of all: How do we eat today?

World Central Kitchen has developed a food relief model that allows us to act immediately, locally, and at the scale the moment demands. Behind every response are real people navigating real loss. These are some of their stories.

Jennifer — Los Angeles, California

When wildfires in LA devastated her neighborhood in Altadena, Jennifer was one of the lucky ones—her home was spared. The Tuesday after the fire, she texted a friend that she knew eight people who had lost their homes. Months later, that number was forty.

As she set off on the long road to recovery, Jennifer drove back to Altadena as often as she could to clear out her house, prepare for remediation, and check on neighbors. On that same two or three mile stretch, she passed two WCK meal distribution sites, day after day. She never stopped to get food. “There were people that needed it more than me,” she said.

What finally made her stop wasn’t hunger. It was time. Weeks passed, then months — and WCK was still there. “Months went by and months went by and you guys were still there feeding people,” she recalled. “That just really impacted me.” After her stop, she knew she had found an organization she wanted to support through the Flora L Thornton Foundation.

“From the very beginning, WCK was there, present in the community, feeding the community. WCK showed up and stayed.”

Jennifer is quick to remind us she was one of the lucky ones. But she also knows the recovery isn’t over—not for her neighbors, not for Altadena, not for LA. Empty lots where homes once stood. Friends still not back in their houses. A community that is closer than ever, and still carrying more than the world knows.

We’re grateful for supporters like Jennifer and the Flora L Thornton Foundation—and for everyone around the world who believes that showing up for others is how we get through the hardest times together.

Margarita — Acapulco, Mexico

Margarita has called Acapulco home for more than 60 years. In that time, she has survived Hurricane Paulina in 1997, Hurricanes Ingrid and Manuel in 2013, and Hurricane Otis in 2023—one of the most destructive storms ever to strike Mexico’s Pacific coast.

Her home, near a river, has been destroyed and rebuilt more times than she can count.

“I am a strong woman,” she says. “But I no longer have the strength to endure yet another catastrophe.”

After Otis, Margarita was too frail to climb the 130 stairs leading to her home. WCK’s team delivered meals to her doorstep, ensuring she had the nourishment she needed for recovery. She knows what it takes to keep going. “The key to staying healthy,” she says, “is to eat well.”

Jeramiah — Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi

When the Kona Low storms swept through Oʻahu in early 2026, bringing record rainfall, flooding, and landslides to communities along the North Shore, Jeramiah Quenga didn’t wait for outside help to arrive. He opened his kitchen.

As the owner of Jeramiah’s Island Fusion, Jeramiah had built his restaurant on the flavors and traditions of his community. When the floods came, that same instinct took over. For more than ten days before WCK connected with his team, Jeramiah and his crew had been cooking and delivering meals entirely on their own.

Jeramiah’s presence, and the trust his community had already placed in him, helped WCK show up the right way: not to take over, but to help scale what was already working. Together, we served thousands of meals like plates of Kalua Pork, Chicken Adobo, Loco Moco, and more—food that tasted like home because it was made by someone who called this place home.

One farm worker, after receiving a meal, said it felt like home—a small moment of normalcy in the middle of an exhausting week. For Jeramiah, that has always been the goal.

Fatima — Mayotte, France

Fatima was one of the many local women in Mayotte, a small French department in the Indian Ocean, who worked with WCK to distribute hot meals to residents recovering from Cyclone Chido. Fatima and our entire team were deeply embedded in their community, so they could identify specific needs and serve meals with the dignity and respect impacted families deserved. 

“I’ve always been someone who loves to help others. But this takes it to another level. It’s much bigger.”

Fatima led a group of women who prepared thousands of meals daily at WCK’s Mayotte Field Kitchen. As a skilled cook and problem solver, she stepped up as an emergency responder for her community, helping us serve more than 1.4 million meals after Cyclone Chido.

Isabel — Valencia, Spain

Volunteers worked tirelessly to support families impacted by floods in Valencia, Spain in October 2024. Their commitment and compassion strengthened community bonds and fueled recovery efforts. Among them was Isabel, a 79-year-old grandmother who immediately stepped up to help her neighbors. She became a symbol of solidarity, saying, “I was born to help, whatever it may be.” Isabel reminds us that a simple smile can brighten the day of someone who has lost so much.

Shania — Shinoh, North Carolina

Local leaders are an essential component to our work around the world. Our relief model relies on people rallying together and supporting one another when disaster strikes. WCK provides the framework and experience; citizens and the local culinary community are the magic.

Shania stepped up as a local community leader in Shiloh, North Carolina—working with WCK and other partners to help her community’s recovery after Hurricane Helene. Shania reflects, “This is the opposite of Covid. Covid separated people. This, the closer we get together, the better.” Watch this video to learn more about Shania.

The Work Ahead

These stories are not exceptions. They are a preview of what more communities will face as the climate crisis deepens.

Through WCK’s Climate & Natural Disaster Fund, we are committed to providing immediate food relief to families impacted by extreme weather. Since 2021, this fund has supported responses to more than 30 climate-related crises—from Category 5 hurricanes to catastrophic flooding to wildfires—across countries including Australia, Brazil, India, Mexico, Madagascar, and the United States.

We don’t wait for the storm to pass. We show up while it’s still raining.