The Tribune

By BEVERLEY BETHELL DOLEZAL

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

“YES, something positive came out of Hurricane Dorian.”

As a Bahamian living in Florida, I learned from the news that Abaco and Grand Bahama survivors were being evacuated to Nassau so I flew down for a week to assist my fellow Bahamians in any way possible.

My aunt, Mary Alice (Sissa) Wassitsch of Lake Cunningham informed me that many volunteers were already set up in the evacuation and relocation process going on in large outdoor tents at Odyssey Aviation, but that more and more helpers would be needed as the number of evacuees was rapidly increasing once residents of Abaco and Grand Bahama realised their homes were no longer habitable.

I mentioned to my aunt that my ability to speak French (from living in Francophone European and African countries for 11 years) might be helpful to facilitate communication with the hundreds of Haitians who spoke little to no English and asked her if they needed any more help.

Knowing that people were arriving by the hundreds each day, her response was “Get down here as soon as you can!”

While those of us in Florida were breathing a huge sigh of relief and counting our lucky stars that Dorian had just skirted our shoreline, we were also completely heartbroken at seeing the horrific images of what had happened to our once beautiful Out Islands.

I was eager to do something more proactive than donating post Hurricane supplies, so I told my husband I had to go and help my Bahamian people.

I drove down to Ft Lauderdale and hopped on a Jet Blue flight to Nassau. It was Tuesday, September 10.

The jovial mood that usually welcomes visitors to Nassau was understandably absent, as both passengers and ground personnel were in a complete state of shock that so much death and destruction had occurred to innocent people in two of our more populated and beautiful islands.

My 88 years young uncle, Pedro Wassitsch, who by this time had become an integral part of the driving pool for relocating evacuees, dropped me at one of two large tents set up at Odyssey Aviation.

From the first moment I stepped into the tent, I was impressed by the organisation. There were tables of volunteers from all walks of life busy at computers and assisting shellshocked evacuees with finding housing, locating family members or relatives, arranging rides to the airport, hotels and homes while also reassuring people that somehow everyone would have a roof over their head and a bed to sleep in.

Scores of other volunteers, both local and from a number of countries, were comforting people, holding babies, handing out bags of toiletries, assisting with finding clothes, shoes and others were serving hot meals and snacks.

There were large coolers of cold drinks, a place for people to rest on chairs or in the back of the tent with pillows and blankets.

For the children, an area was set up with toys, games and colouring books so they could play while they were waiting to be picked up and driven to a dry and safe location.

Everything in the tent had been donated by generous residents who wanted to help their people, give them hope and set them on the path to recovery. I saw my cousin, Linda Holowesko, with cell phone in hand, gave her a quick hug, and asked “Where can I help?” She pointed to all of the tables piled high with donated goods and said, “anywhere you can” but had to quickly rush off to deal with another relocation situation.

It was truly like a scene out of the Mash TV series when you would hear the helicopters overhead and know that there were about to be hundreds of incoming people from the disaster scene, but this time there were planeloads of homeless people who had miraculously survived Dorian’s wrath.

The weary and blank stares confirmed that many were still traumatised beyond belief and in shock over having made it out alive.

There were horror stories of friends and relatives who had died so abruptly but we wanted people to know they were now safe and had not only the support of the rest of The Bahamas, but the entire world was counting on them to carry on. If they wanted to cry or be hugged, or let someone else hold their babies, it was all OK and we were all there for them.

The volunteers inside the tent all shared one common trait - compassion for suffering souls. In the days that I helped, I never heard an angry voice but instead a thousand “thank you’s” from extremely grateful people.

Many had lost everything except the clothes they were wearing, yet it was obvious they were extremely thankful that God had spared them. Every one of the survivors had their own story and while some wanted to share tragic stories of death and destruction, many couldn’t even talk about their horrific experience.

Our focus as volunteers was to help them in any small way we could and to provide comfort and hope.

As a grandmother of seven, I was especially concerned about the children but quickly found that it was the youngest, most oblivious and adorable babies who were giving everyone else the hope of a brighter future and a reason to carry on.

I met so many wonderful people among the volunteers... Linda, Lisa, Ashley, Andrea, Carla, Mary, Kim, Jay, Julie, Erin, Lily, Jazzy, Daisy, Helene, Scott, Jill, Michelle, Nina, Kim, Alannah, Page, Valentino, Jeanette,Sara, Anna, Nicole, Rebecca, Chet, Peter, Jeff, Carlos... and scores of others. You were all amazing and it was an honor to work side by side with you! We all felt amply rewarded from the many sighs of relief, tears of both sadness and joy, hugs from adults and kids, smiles and laughter from babies, the satisfaction of knowing that families now would have a roof over their heads, and especially by receiving so many heartfelt thanks from people who had almost reached their breaking point. I found out that this fantastic group of people at Odyssey Aviation had managed to process no less than 2700 evacuees. Pretty impressive, I’d say!

Who knew that my experience of playing a very small part in helping Hurricane Dorian victims was going to be life altering and something truly quite extraordinary. I was so humbled and proud to have been working alongside these kind souls who selflessly worked until they were ready to drop. My faith in the goodness of human beings has been fully restored and the display of resilience in the Bahamian people is no less than phenomenal.

As Suze Orman profoundly wrote: “True generosity is an offering and given out of pure love. No strings attached. No expectations. Time and love are the most valuable possessions you can share.”

Today, September 17, I head back to Florida. Am I happy I made the trip? A resounding YES, for I saw true generosity with my very own eyes!

Stay strong and kind Bahamas - will send tourists!