With Hurricane Florence in the news lately, news stories from previous hurricanes always surface. Looking back, Hurricane Irma is one of the first tragedies to come to mind.
Hurricane Irma lasted from August 30, 2017, to September 13, 2017, resulting in 134 fatalities and costing over $64.76 billion in damages. In fact, Irma was named the strongest Atlantic storm recorded thus far. But, here’s something positive to come out of this Floridian tragedy. Millionaire and non-profit board director of SOS Children’s Village, Marc Bell, along with his wife Jennifer, took care of 70 orphaned children while the storm was underway.
After receiving a call regarding the 70 children who needed a place to stay while their current shelter was in a dangerous zone, Marc didn’t think twice about opening the doors of his 27,000 square foot mansion to keep them safe for a few hours until the coast was clear.
However, a few hours turned into days. Fortunately, the Bells were up for the challenge. They let the children shower, gave them full meals and desserts, and even bought a bunch of toys for the children.
On top of that, the Bells even threw birthday parties for the children as some of them had recent birthdays that they otherwise would have not been able to celebrate. They hired a clown, had a balloon guy, hosted sports games, had ice cream trucks, you name it.
But, after the storm died down and the power came back on, indicating it was time for the orphaned children to head back to SOS Children’s Village, the Bells continued to support them via charity donations. The couple ensured that the children would be well-fed and clothed. “They were the best house guests that we’ve ever had,” says Jennifer.
Besides giving these orphans a dream stay in a mansion, along with quality food and toys, the kind act proved that regardless of one’s social status, there are good people out there. But unfortunately, wealthy individuals often get smack for being “ungrateful” and “selfish” or for “taking their wealth for granted.” The complete opposite is true with the Bells; they have hearts of gold.
After hearing that he and his wife were called heroes, Marc had a response: “We are not heroes. The people who came out are heroes. 150 volunteers who came out, those are the real heroes.”
Watch the video below if you wish to learn more about Marc and Jennifer Bell’s incredibly generous, selfless act during Hurricane Irma. If the story warmed your heart, be sure to share it on social media!
