RUSKIN, Fla. — Two years after Hurricane Helene sent several feet of floodwater into parts of the Tampa Bay area, Ruskin’s Firehouse Cultural Center is once again filled with music, art, and community.
The nonprofit cultural center, located near an area that saw about 4 feet of floodwater during the storm, suffered extensive damage when Helene’s storm surge pushed into its buildings.
Inside the center’s clay studio, regulars are now back at work on pottery projects, from bowls to fruit strainers to holiday gnomes.
“Do you ever mess up? Yeah,” resident Dottie Cesario said with a laugh. “But our saying around here is, ‘It’s just mud.’ So we just throw it away and start over.”
That saying has become a fitting reflection of the center’s recovery.
Helene’s storm surge flooded the clay studio with about 3½ feet of water, destroying much of the expensive equipment, including pottery wheels and kilns. The storm also damaged drywall, furniture and flooring.
“It was devastating,” said Chris Bredbenner, executive director of the Firehouse Cultural Center. “It was saltwater, septic water, mud and a whole big mess.”
The damage stretched beyond the clay studio to the center’s main building across the street, which houses classrooms, meeting space, a community theater, and offices.
Bredbenner documented the destruction through photos and videos in the days after the storm.
“We had the service restoration company in here within hours the next day,” he said. “And my team, a small team of maintenance folks and volunteers, pushing everything out.”
The recovery took more than two years of on-and-off work and cost more than $300,000 in repairs.
The center received help from Hillsborough County emergency funds, since the buildings belong to the county. It also raised money through fundraisers and received support from local donors.
Some reminders of Helene remain. The kilns still show rust left behind by the storm, though they have been repaired. The pottery wheels were all replaced.
Most importantly, residents have returned.
“At one of our shows, somebody said, ‘Well, you’ve built back beautifully,’” Bredbenner said. “And I think that summed it up.”
Today, the Firehouse Cultural Center continues to host theater and music performances, pottery classes for children and adults, and community meetings for various local groups.
For many in Ruskin, the recovery is a sign of the center’s importance — and of the community that helped bring it back.
For more information on the Firehouse Cultural Center and its various programs and community events, visit here https://firehouseculturalcenter.org