NORTH PORT, Fla. — The sounds of clean-up are all too familiar to Louisiana veteran Dustin Bergeron, who lost a lot in Hurricane Ida.
"It's something I recognize. I'm still living in a camper," he said.
And yet, in the midst of his own rebuild, we found him in North Port helping other veterans clean up after Hurricane Ian.
"As veterans, we always say, 'I got your six.' And some people say it and some people actually live by it," Bergeron said.
It's a philosophy that's at the heart of After the Mission, the veterans charity group Bergeron came down with. The group's founder, Ricky Folse, told ABC Action News they're doing this work for free all over the state.
"To know that people fought for this country and served us so we can have a better life have lost everything and some of them do not have insurance, so it may be months before FEMA helps them," Bergeron said.
And it's help that came in the nick of time for North Port veteran Todd Greulich, who said he watched massive trees fall all around his home during the storm.
"[It] Makes my heart melt because you don't find too many people nowadays with hearts like that that will do things for others and have no ulterior motives," he said.
If you're a veteran that needs some free clean-up help, the group says there are two ways to reach them:
- You can call or text Ricky at 985-688-4041;
- Or you can send them a message on the After the Mission website.