Hurricane Ian Hero: Woman and her Naples organization rose up in a time of need for thousands

Alex Martin, Naples Daily News
·2 min read
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Note to readers: The News-Press and Naples Daily News are recognizing the heroes of Hurricane Ian. These are people and organizations who went above and beyond after the Category 4 storm hit Southwest Florida on Sept. 28, 2022. We asked these heroes to tell us in their own words about their experiences. Today, we hear from Jeanne Nealon, the co-founder of the nonprofit Laces for Love, who shared her first-person story with our reporter Alex Martin.

I remember deplaning from a vacation right before Hurricane Ian struck Southwest Florida, and a thought came about in my mind.

We had just distributed 10,000 pairs of shoes in August for back to school drives in Lee and Collier counties. Could we mobilize in time to be able to distribute shoes to communities in distress? Was it feasible for us to meet potential demand?

Three of our board members lost homes. They were in dire straits. It reflected the feeling of many across Southwest Florida who didn't know what their next steps were going to be.

I’ve lived here since ’77. I’ve seen nothing like this.

Laces of Love organized and distributed just under 13,000 pairs of shoes following Hurricane Ian's destruction across Southwest Florida.
Laces of Love organized and distributed just under 13,000 pairs of shoes following Hurricane Ian's destruction across Southwest Florida.

There were times where we shed a lot of tears. Then you’d just sit there and tag shoes, it was almost like meditation to be able to do this and not worry about what’s going on somewhere else.

People were stacking their shoes on top of houses because their homes were flooded. Kids and people were barefoot. To see all of the devastation, ranging from East Naples to Fort Myers, made me emotional.

We wouldn’t have been able to distribute 12,710 pairs of shoes after Ian battered the region without the help of community members. We’ve never had to clear out our inventory like that. It was so quick. I couldn’t believe the need.

We had three storage units. We emptied everything we had. The need for shoes was that urgent in Southwest Florida, especially Fort Myers.

Laces of Love organized and distributed just under 13,000 pairs of shoes following Hurricane Ian's destruction across Southwest Florida. Pictured is co-founder Jeanne Nealon
Laces of Love organized and distributed just under 13,000 pairs of shoes following Hurricane Ian's destruction across Southwest Florida. Pictured is co-founder Jeanne Nealon

But after distributing a total of 26,575 shoes over the course of last year, it’s given me renewed belief that we can continue to make a larger and more profound impact across the wonderful community we call home. Whatever the need may be, I hope we can meet it here in the area.

To this day, there's still people who aren’t back in their houses yet. There are people who can’t pay their bills. You think giving someone a pair of shoes isn’t that big of a deal, but to that father and that mother who can’t pay their bills, not having to worry about shoes is a big deal.

I’ll always remember what a father told me, who lost their home on Fort Myers Beach like much of the island on that day.

“You gave my kids new shoes, but you gave me hope.”

Jeanne Nealon is a co-founder of Laces of Love in Naples alongside Mary Myrmo and Susy Warren.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Hurricane Ian in SW Florida led to heroic effort from Laces of Love