- January 18, 2025
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Clad in pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, team members with Volusia County Schools' facilities, maintenance and operations departments were recognized by the School Board on Tuesday, Oct. 25, for their efforts in helping Lee County recover from Hurricane Ian.
VCS Superintendent Carmen Balgobin said she received an email on Oct. 11, from Florida Department of Education Senior Chancellor Jacob Oliva, who shared that Lee County was in need of support as virtually all of the district's schools were impacted by Ian. Within three hours of speaking to Lee County officials about its needs, 17 VCS employees volunteered to be deployed to help on Oct. 12.
According to the district's Facebook page, the employees have 126 years of cumulative experience with VCS, and they spent 2,456 hours servicing about 20 schools with debris removal, water filter changes, ceiling tile replacements, HVAC repairs and other projects. The employees returned to Volusia County on Oct. 17.
"There were no hotels for them to stay at, so they took their own cots and they just got comfortable I guess at the Educational Leadership Center there," said Balgobin at the School Board meeting. "But it really shows you the heart, the camaraderie."
VCS Chief Operating Officer Earl Johnson said that when they asked for volunteers for this recovery effort, the district had to turn some volunteers away.
"These guys volunteered to go down there and serve another district and we really appreciate that," Johnson said.
Facilities maintenance tech William DeRosier said he was blessed to be able to go help along with the rest of the team.
"I was impressed by everyone of these guys, how hard they work," he said.
The employees that participated in the effort were:
