The “Hard Rains’ Gonna Fall” pilot project was launched to address vulnerabilities intensified by extreme weather events. We invited community members to share their experiences and stories during several local events and via the MyCoast citizen science app. Preliminary analyses reveal a strong desire for increased connectedness, preparedness, and education regarding weather challenges, particularly around flooding. A key output of this work is a newly developed guide for community organizations and local governments on how to facilitate storytelling events, thereby bridging the gap between technical risk assessments and community needs. By leveraging storytelling and the MyCoast app, we can show how community driven data can better inform disaster preparedness and policymaking, ensuring that community voices shape resilience strategies against future environmental challenges.