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LAPLACE — The Louisiana We Are Strong Relief Team will be distributing food, water and care packages beginning at 10 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 19 at the Arcuri Center (LaPlace Courthouse), located at 1020 Cambridge Drive in LaPlace. Hot meals will also be given out to community members.

Organizer Jameika Snyder yearned to give back to her hometown in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Ida. Snyder is a LaPlace native and a graduate of East St. John High School. She currently resides in Ponchatoula and operates her own tax business, but her heart is still connected to St. John the Baptist Parish.

Snyder is currently providing shelter to 15 friends and family members who lost everything during the storm in LaPlace and Reserve. She knows countless others are facing similar situations, and that something as small as a bottled water or hot meal can make a big difference to someone weathering life’s storms.

The Louisiana We Are Strong Relief Team is made up of approximately 17 volunteers. According to Snyder, donations have come in from businesses in New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

The relief team was putting together packages Friday in preparation for Sunday’s event.

“Our care packages contain items such as hand sanitizer, soap, tooth paste and a tooth brush. We’ve received almost 100 cases of water, and we are also going to give away boiled seafood,” Snyder said. “It’s first come, first served. We are going to try to put a smile on everybody’s faces.”