Our Work

Hurricanes Irma & Maria caused massive devastation in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and many other areas of the Caribbean. A former St. Croix, U.S.V.I. resident and pilot, Jennifer Lockwood, wanted to help.

After a successful mission to assist in the wake of Irma and Maria, the team decides to form a nonprofit. Jen Lockwood and volunteer pilot, Adam Domino, come up with the name Sol Relief.

Jen worked with St. Pete Air and volunteer pilot network from first response to organize a backpack donation drive. We flew 33 flights and collaborated with the Appalachicola Sheriff’s office for distribution of emergency response supplies and with the Red Cross who managed the local shelter to distribute backpacks of basic supplies for families who lost everything. We were presented with an award for the Florida Sheriff’s Association for our service.

On September 1, 2019 we launched a relief effort to support the Bahamas in recovering from a direct hit by Hurricane Dorian. To date, this is the largest response Sol Relief has organized and executed. We coordinated 80 flights in the first 10 days and managed long term recovery and rebuilding efforts over the past 4 years in excess of $4 million dollars

Hurricanes Eta and Iota were two back-to-back Category 4 hurricanes that devastated Central America. We quickly realized that flying supplies to the affected areas was not the most efficient course of action. Instead, we supported local community leaders in Central America who facilitated acquiring needed supplies locally and then delivered the supplies to people who needed them most.

24 hours after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the community of Haiti, Sol Relief, World Hope International, and Caribbean Partnership Missions flew their first relief flight to the devastated area. We continued to plan over x flights within the regions for non profit partners.

Fiona was the sixth named storm, third hurricane and first major hurricane of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season. Sol Relief partnered with Tango Whiskey Squadron & MAPP International to deliver support to the affected areas.

Sol Relief’s center of operations, Albert Whitted Airport, was in the initial predicted path of Hurricane Ian. However, the storm veered east prior to reaching the Tampa Bay area and instead made landfall in Lee County, FL. As soon as Sol Relief was safe to stand up operations, reconnaissance and rescue flights began.

A previous Sol partner and beneficiary, Ecuménicas por el Derecho a Decidir, reached out to us for support in the wake of Julia. We donated to the organization and they distributed supplies and gift cards to over 60 families in need.

Hurricane Beryl made landfall in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on July 1, 2024, causing widespread devastation, particularly on the Southern Grenadine islands of Union Island and Mayreau. Homes, infrastructure, and water systems were severely damaged, leaving residents in urgent need of assistance.