If there is a natural disaster, Emergency Disaster Services is the place to call, with more than 1,000 supply trailers ready to send out.
Emergency Disaster Services, or EDS, provides essential workers a place to sleep, eat, shower and do their laundry while responding to emergencies such as hurricanes, tornadoes, ice storms and earthquakes.
Mike started EDS with his two brothers, Tom and Jerry, who all worked in food services. Their experience in food services brought their attention to Florida Power and Light workers sleeping in their trucks.
Mike and his wife, Cindy, moved back to Maysville 14 years ago and bought an empty lot to start building his company.
Each trailer contains different utilities or rooms for workforce housing. Some trailers may hold six beds or 42 beds. Other trailers may hold showers, toilets, kitchens or washers and dryers.
Around Maysville, Mike has rebuilt abandoned tobacco warehouses to hold his trailers. He has sent trailers to emergencies across the country. There isn’t a state he hasn’t been to, Mike said.
Mike is currently building a replica of the Garden of Gethsemane with Jerry at St. Patrick Cemetery. The garden includes 14 life-sized statues of Christ’s final procession. Each statue is made from bronze and represents a different phase of Christ’s walk to the cross.
Mike and Jerry also own a well-known restaurant in town, Caproni’s.
Mike is on the go 24/7 and gets very few hours of sleep every day. He is always there when someone needs him, whether it be at the warehouse, the cemetery, the restaurant or a friend calling to catch up.
At the end of the day, Mike goes home to relax or plan for what needs to be done the next day.
