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Family from Wilmington, N.C. flees Florence, finds refuge in Snellville woman's home

It's yet another great example of neighbors helping others in times of need.

Hurricane Florence had no mercy on Wilmington, North Carolina.

The city was one of the worst hit by the storm, with flooding rains virtually cutting the city off from the rest of the state.

Earlier this week, 11Alive’s Ashley Johnson covered the power of Facebook, with Good Samaritans pouring in left and right, eager to help evacuees.

That’s where she caught up with Kristen Thompson, whose family is Wilmington. They evacuated Wednesday ahead of the storm, and now have no clue how, or if, they will be returning home.

"I wanna go home. I wanna be back in my house, but where we live, the road is washed out, so we can't even get to our house," she explained. "But at least me and my kids are safe."

Thompson and her kids, and another family who made the trek with them, are staying in a motel for the time being. But, money is becoming tight, and they’re now worried they will be stranded here in Georgia... homeless.

Thompson said they have tried to make the most of what Atlanta has to offer – they went to a Braves game the zoo.

But 11Alive wanted to do more to help. So, Ashley reached back out to the Good Samaritan from the story earlier this week – Mary Rose. She invited Thompson and her family to come to their home in Snellville.

'Opening my home I think was a no-brainer'| Facebook group helps Florence evacuees find lodging

11Alive was there as Thompson and her family met Mary Rose for the first time.

"It's a true blessing to have a home to invite people to come into," her husband explained.

"Just thinking about others. I'm not sure what their experience has been over the last few days. I can only imagine," Mary Rose added. "So hopefully, if we can do anything to make them comfortable, we want to be able to do that. Especially the children."

It’s yet another great example of neighbors helping others in times of need.

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