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WELCOME!!!
Aug 14, 2004
Thank you all for your prayers...they worked!
We are safe and very very grateful to God
and Mother Nature that the Hurricane took a turn away from us at the last minute. The destruction all around us is
heartbreaking. Port Charlotte, 30 miles North of us really was hit hard. I am sure you have seen shots of it
on TV. We have only seen the newspaper and heard reports on our transistor radio.
We just now got phone lines
working. I am so glad I have this laptop which is all charged up on a good battery. We have no electricity yet.
Charley was turning from a Category 2 to 3 and then 4 and was heading right for us in Fort Myers, winds wer at about
150 MPH!!!!
When it hit Sanibel and Captiva where thank the Goddess our friends had evacuated, we left our house by
the Caloosahatchee River to stay on higher ground. A few hours after we left the house the hurricane took a turn
away from us here and headed north. The damage all around us is devastating but we are OK. None of our big glass
windows broke. Our living room flooded and some of our beautiful trees were uprooted. Our mango trees were stripped
of many of their branches and hundreds of mangos are everywhere in our front yard. We are cleaning up today and bringing
all the mangos to shelters where they need food. We cried when we saw how many of our trees and plants were destroyed,
but some may recover.
We were very frightened for about an hour or so as we watched Charlie come right
at us on TV.. The lights went out after we realized that it had taken a last minute turn north and away from us.
The sound of the wind and rain was unbelievable...like a big freight train roaring through the living room. Trees bent
to the ground. We had one little window that we looked through at the peak of the storm as the rest of Bob and Tom's
house was shuttered up tight. It was really terrifying and we were about to take cover under mattresses. We
were afraid of the roof blowing off, but it held tight. So did our brand new roof. I fell to my knees in gratitude
when it was over. We have a Coleman stove and our barbecue to cook on. And try to stay outside in the shade.
Our house is drying out...some flood repair guys came over and sucked out all the water with a machine and ripped out
the carpet. We will put in a tile floor instead when we get back from the reunion.
It is unbearably
hot with no fans or air conditioners, but we at least have running water. Some stores may open today in town...ice
is like gold right now. Our neighbor who is a Shrimper brought us some from the Shrimpers dock last night where
they have a generator and a ice maker. Neighbors are all helping one another of course. So we are camping out
kinda and doing just fine. My heart goes out to those who lost homes and lives in Charlotte. Will write more
soon. I will post photos too!
Much love,
Holley
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