FORT MYERS, Fla. — The wives of Fort Myers’ construction workers, painters, roofers, landscapers and electricians and their families gathered at the food pantry of Jesus the Worker church on Thursday, as they had every day that week.
Some came to help. Others came to receive help. All were struggling in one way or another.
In the kitchen, the mostly Mexican and Guatemalan women formed an assembly line. Claudia Francisco, a clerk at Florida Southwest state college, which is closed for repairs, stood at the front of the table, packing boxes and giving orders, while several other women who were out of work because of the storm spooned Mexican spaghetti with sour cream and vats of chicken and vegetables into to-go containers.
