Several Maryland businesses have found different ways to provide relief to areas impacted by hurricanes Milton and Helene.

Christopher Mullins, owner of Chesapeake Bay Coffee Co. in North East, said he saw the devastation of Helene on social media and knows people in the impacted area.

“God had just put it on my heart to try to use my platform of the coffee shop to try to raise awareness and to get some donations together,” Mullins wrote in an email to The Baltimore Sun.

His coffee shop was able to load an RV, plus a single truck, to capacity with supplies, and head to Mars Hill, North Carolina.

Mullins said they saw warehouses washed down the river and cars mangled with trees. Mullins said he and his friend, Wayne Dougherty, shoveled mud out of people’s homes.

“We saw things that were horrible, and the lack of help from the government was very discouraging,” Mullins said.

Back-to-back hurricanes, Helene and Milton, devastated much of Florida and North Carolina. The number of deaths surpassed 200, according to the Associated Press. The storms flooded streets, cars and buildings, and winds ripped roofs off businesses, houses and churches.

Mullins said local pastors were delegating resources, staying in communication through phone calls and walkie-talkies, and setting up drop-off and pickup zones for supplies.

Chesapeake Bay Coffee Co. has partnered with MacGregor’s Restaurant in Havre de Grace and the North East High School at 300 Irish Town Road in North East to solicit donations of supplies such as heaters, blankets, sleeping bags, propane and kerosene, Mullins said.

Donations will be accepted at the high school until Friday, but MacGregor’s is considering accepting donations into next week.

Pickett Brewing Company in Baltimore also joined Helene relief efforts by collecting items for those impacted, according to Kate Conway, a co-owner. So far, the brewery has one shipment out in North Carolina.

One of the beertenders, Eric Kraai, has two children living in North Carolina, and his daughter drove the shipment to her community in Boone. The South Baltimore Brewery District is still collecting supplies, and Kraii’s son will drive another round out when he returns to his home in Asheville.

“The South Baltimore Brewery District felt compelled to initiate these efforts because of our personal connections to the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene and also because Asheville is brewery-centric,” Conway wrote in an email. “Our hearts go out to everyone affected and to those who have lost family, friends and livelihoods. We hope to play a small role in the recovery efforts in the larger towns and smaller hollers who have lost the most.”

Additionally, Route One Apparel, a Maryland-based retailer, accepted physical donations of items including baby formula, nonperishable food, bottled water and more for Helene disaster through Wednesday, said founder Ali Von Paris.

As of Tuesday, Route One Apparel had nearly filled a truckwith oversized moving boxes full of goods, Von Paris said.

Maryland businesses such as Box Hill Pizzeria & Crab Cakes in Abingdon are also lending aid. The pizzeria donated 10% of all proceeds from in-restaurant sales and shipped orders Monday and Tuesday to support Florida hurricane relief efforts, according to an Instagram post. The business also collected items Monday and Tuesday for those affected.

Have a news tip? Contact Tony Roberts at troberts @baltsun.com and 443-623-1817.