On September 28, 2022, Nancy & I became hurricane refugees. Five days after the storm we finally got off the island. Carrying our few belongings, we lined up with others at a dock in the devastated village of Matlacha, and got on a small boat owned by strangers. They took us to the mainland and just before they turned around to go back for more, I tried to give them some gas money. They refused to take it, saying they were doing this to help the country which took them in when they were refugees a couple of years ago. Two were Cuban and one was Mexican. They had been doing this rescue work for days.
~ I’ve been in 74 countries & territories around the world, and I’ve seen a lot of refugees. Now I was one myself in my own home islands, rescued by former refugees. The irony was not lost on me. And neither was the fact that this is a country of constant immigrants & refugees. In my opinion, that is the story, and a strength, of America. I was interviewed for WGCU/PBS "Gulf Coast Life"- here's the link which speaks to this in more detail: https://news.wgcu.org/show/gulf-coast-life/2022-11-14

Onward & Upward, for us all,
Bob
Robert N. Macomber
Pine Island, Florida