FSU Students and Irma Evacuees Give Back To Starkville

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) –   Many people across Florida are still living out of suitcases and away from home.

On Friday, three Florida State University students, who fled from Hurricane Irma, put aside their worries to help a Starkville family.

The young women are staying with a Starkville family, who opened their doors to the evacuees, without ever meeting them before.

Soon, they’ll be gripping a steering wheel to go back to FSU, but today they grabbed a hammer to build a stranger’s home.

Nail by nail, these Florida State University students and Hurricane Irma evacuees want to lend a hand to a needy family.

This Habitat for Humanity home on Owens Drive in Starkville is a steady work in progress.

Although Tallahassee did not take a direct hit, these students still worry about their home as they climb a ladder, to help build a stranger’s house.

“We think our apartment is fine, but they didn’t have electricity for one day or like air, electricity, internet, water, all those things, but hopefully, I think our home is fine,” says Ane Castro.

A mutual friend connected them with a Starkville family, a safe place to stay, and peace of mind.

“My friend now, close friend, has a family in Mississippi, so she was looking for people who would be hosting evacuees, those who evacuate, and we ended up in Starkville with John and Linda,” says Emiliya Usmanova.

Spain and Russia are their true homes, but Tallahassee is where they go to school.

A hurricane was the last thing they expected when they were unpacking their bags to start class.

“All of this happened like pretty fast, like we just arrived there and we like, settle in, buy all of this stuff, and suddenly we were like in the hurricane thing, so we just came here like in a rush, kind of, like decisions were taken quickly,” says Nagore Barrena.

They’ve seen first hand why Mississippi is called the Hospitality State and were ready to repay the kindness.

“It’s always good to help other people and when you have been helped, you know, like Linda and John, they took us in their home without knowing us, so I think like the least we can do is help other people too,” says Barrena.

The students will drive around seven hours on Saturday, in order to start class on Monday.

They tell WCBI they’ve built life-long friendships on this unforgettable experience.