PALMETTO, Fla. — The First United Methodist Church of Palmetto suffered significant roof and structural damage during the hurricane, including a missing pane from their iconic rose window.
The repairs totaled thousands of dollars that the congregation simply didn't have.
WATCH Church member's final gift helps rebuild Palmetto church after Hurricane Milton
"The insurance is provided in the Florida United Methodist Conference," said former Pastor Stephen Rasmussen. A lot of churches had to wait for the insurance from the conference to kick in."
Less than a month after the storm, the church lost one of its most devoted members. Anne Marshall, 84, passed away after dedicating more than 40 years of her life to the church and its congregation.
But Marshall had left something behind that few people knew about — a donation in her will that would prove to be exactly what the church needed.
"Community service was her life, that's what she did," said Sherry Marshall Marfisi, Anne's sister.
Marshall's connection and devotion to the church ran deep. Her mother had been part of the congregation since 1971, and Anne followed in those footsteps.
"My mother had been part of this church since 1971. So she kind of stepped into my mother's footsteps with everything in the community," Marfisi said.
For nearly a decade, Marshall served as head trustee at the church, a role that put her in charge of all repairs and maintenance. Although she didn't specify how the church should use the money, it ultimately went directly towards the hurricane repairs.
"She would have never expected that. She would have just expected it to go toward general expenses and stuff," Marfisi said.
When asked how Anne would feel knowing her donation helped during such a difficult time, Marfisi's response was immediate.
"Very good, very good, very good. That would have just put her right over the top, knowing that," she said.
Marshall's friend Eileen Hoffner says she would not have expected anything less from Anne Marshall.
"She put everything she had mentally for so many years and physically for so many years into this church," Hoffner said.
And former Pastor Rasmussen sees a divine timing in how everything unfolded.
"When there's something that's unexplainable, at least from my view as a pastor, I call it a God thing; it's just the timing of it was a God thing," he said.
Now Marshall's legacy lives on in the rebuilt sanctuary — a place she called home for more than four decades and where her spirit of service continues to inspire the congregation.
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It's been one year since Hurricane Milton impacted our community. Tampa Bay 28 revisited some of Tampa Bay's hardest hit areas to show the recovery and the work that still needs to be done.
