County collaborates to help ailing seafood workers

Eastpoint’s Robert Baxley is among a growing number of Franklin County oystermen who have stopped feeling the pinch of a bad economy.

Now, they’re facing the bite, and government, social service and charitable organizations are stepping in to see about fending off the wolf at their doors.

Carrying a sheaf of past due rent and utility notices, Baxley was among about three dozen other seafood workers who took time away from what has become a much less lucrative occupation tonging oysters these days to confront the county commissioners Friday morning at a special meeting.

The meeting followed a Thursday conference call between emergency management officials and social service providers from around the region to discuss the worsening economic conditions wrought on the industry by cold weather, bay closures and overworked bars.

“Even if they opened the whole bay, they’re not going to be able to catch up,” said Commissioner Bevin Putnal. “It’s going to be hard to make it until the summer bars open. It’s going to be a struggle just to survive.

“I do know people about to lose their house,” he said. “We have families living in one house just to survive. It’s a horror story.”

The oystermen in the audience didn’t have to step forward to the podium to recount their difficulties, as it was clear from the outset of the meeting the degree of financial hardship caused by the double whammy of frigid weather and bay closures in the last several weeks.

Because of heavy rains, several of the six winter bars have been closed off and on since early December, and on the days the bars are open, the extremely cold weather has added to the difficulty of tonging healthy, legal size oysters.

“Three people on a boat are sometimes getting 10 bags of oysters,” said one woman. “Let them know, we do not have oysters.”

Another man spoke up from the audience, telling the commissioners that he and his wife are working all day and bringing in $100, not very good for what should be a busy time of year.

“Three years ago we caught 25 bags together,” he said. “Now we can’t catch six.”

Industry regulators are well aware of the stress on the oyster bars, but adhere to a strict regimen of seasonal closures so as to maximize the production of a healthy product.

“They’re going to pull whatever they can from the few areas we have open,” said David Heil, assistant director of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Service's Division of Aquaculture. “That’s when the times are really difficult for them.”

Just how difficult the times are was seen in the presentation by Pam Brownell, the county’s emergency management director, to the commissioners.

She said the week started with a call from Taunya James, the president of the Franklin County Seafood Workers Association, who wanted people to be “aware of how bad, bad it was in our county.”

A Jan. 28 conference call, coordinated by the seven-county Big Bend Community Organizations Active in Disaster group, brought together representatives from a diverse group of 28 social service organizations, from Weems Memorial Hospital to Salvation Army, from Franklin’s Promise to Sen. Bill Nelson’s office, and from Progress Energy to the United Way.

The conference call hammered out ideas, beginning with 2-1-1 Big Bend providing telephone counseling and referrals to the proper agencies.

Big Bend Hospice agreed to provide rent, mortgage and utility assistance to its current hospice clients, while Progress Energy promised to work with customers to negotiate utility payments so as not disconnect electricity. Brownell shared Progress’ toll-free number (800) 700-8744 at last week’s special meeting.

The Salvation Army had provided 316 food boxes to families as of last week, along with limited rent, mortgage and utility assistance. Weems has provided free emergency care.

Two of the most prominent organizations have each scheduled a local outreach. The Department of Children and Families will be at the emergency management office from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 3, while Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida will be St. Patrick’s Catholic Church on Thursday, Feb. 4 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. (See sidebar)

Commissioners promise help, but urge patience

The commissioners all voiced sympathy for the plight of the workers, and agreed unanimously to seek to have Franklin County declared among 60 Florida counties affected by the recent frigid weather.

They approved such a resolution, due last Friday to Governor Crist. Alan Pierce, director of administrative services, said he provided the state with numbers indicating that the county had zero reported oyster landings in December and January, compared to about $493,000 worth in Dec. 2008, and about $710,000 in Jan. 2009.

If eventually approved by Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack, Franklin County’s oystermen could be eligible for federal emergency loans and assistance payments. The Farm Service Agency said each application will be considered “on its own merit by taking into account the extent of losses, security available, and repayment ability.”

Pierce stressed that seafood workers will have to provide documentation to show their lost income.

Voicing support for helping the oystermen, Commissioner Cheryl Sanders said she wanted to be sure public and private help also went to crabbers and shrimpers who have been impacted. “I don’t want to pick and choose it. It’s for everybody,” she said. “I believe in helping yourself. But there comes a time when you can’t go no further.”

On several occasions, shouts from the audience indicated the oystermen were ready, willing and able to work for the money that could spell the difference between a warm hearth and homelessness.

“We’re workers. We’ll do it,” said one man. “We don’t mind working for it. Not at all.”

After Commissioner Pinki Jackel outlined several options for local food pantry assistance to the needy, Commissioner Noah Lockley urged the county to pressure elected officials to find a long-term solution for the oyster industry, especially since production is dropping while there are more than 1,400 licensed oystermen, among the highest total in the last 15 years.

“The problem goes further than this,” said Lockley. “They done worked them (the oyster bars) out. There’s nothing there.

“People have to eat but there not going to have anything to cook it on,” he said, as shouts of “That’s right!” could be heard from the audience.

Jackel said the participation in the conference call indicated that there’s “a lot of folks concerned about us, and y’all, in Franklin County.”

But, she added, “there are limited funds and their hands are tied.

“”I know you can’t put people caring about you in the bank,” said Jackel. “These things take a little time. I know you’ve been hurting and I see it on your faces.”

Putnal offered a few politically-tinged remarks as he spoke out for seafood workers. “If they can spend more than $1 billion on a railroad track,” he said, referring to recently approved plans to build a high-speed rail service between Tampa and Orlando,” they could spend some money helping the seafood workers out.

“We’re taking up hundreds of millions of dollars for Haiti,” said Putnal. “I’m glad because they need it. But we have people at home suffering just as bad.”

Brownell echoed Putnal’s sentiments. “This is not going to go away,” she said. “America needs to take care of Americans first.”