METAMORPHOSIS: Building the Dome of a Home

esistant than its conventional neighbors. I feel that he was impacted by the devastation he saw
and will use the knowledge gleaned if a hurricane strikes our shores again. As governor, Mr.
Crist is already improving negotiations between insurer and insured. In a world of politicians, he
is a rare gem of a man.
Gary Cole was an actual hurricane survivor that also made his way to the Dome of a Home.
Having spent almost forty years at the beach, Gary was a local that was familiar with storms.
He had stayed for every hurricane since moving to the beach four days after high school. So,
deciding to stay for Hurricane Ivan was business as usual. Gary's home was a ground level
cinder block house located on Via de Luna, the main street running through the center of the
island. He was approximately three blocks from the Gulf and also, the Sound.
Hurricane Ivan greeted the island with a tremendous storm surge that devoured Gary's home
around him. Refrigerators, huge chunks of concrete, and houses were swept along in a river of
ocean water and debris. As his home disintegrated around him, Gary had to cross this rushing
river of death to reach his neighbor's home. Fortunately, Deb Friedman's home is on pilings and
her stairs had not been swept away. Gary struggled up the stairs and went inside the home.
With a sigh of relief, he took in a deep breath as he savored his successful swim to his neighbor's
ark in the storm. The moment of relief was short-lived as the windows broke in Deb's home.
Gary stuffed mattresses in the open wounds and waited out Ivan's wrath. Once the storm had
abated slightly, Gary could see the rubble that had been his home for almost forty years.
Eventually, Gary made his way to the Dome, where food, water, and new friends at least
alleviated the isolation he had felt during the storm. In the following days, Gary would spend his
days sifting through the sand for items that would become mementos of his life before Ivan.
Treasures searched for with great diligence and found with great joy! In many cases, the items
survivors cling to have no monetary value, but they are invaluable because of what they
represent. Gary found a bottle of scotch that had been given to him decades ago. For over
thirty years, he had been saving it for a special occasion. Surviving Ivan, the Terrible, definitely
qualified as a special occasion.
wonderful people I met along the way.
15
All of us at the Dome‟s Survivors
Camp grilled steaks and fish under
the stars and embraced the
peaceful solitude for the evening.
We knew the next days, weeks,
months and years would be filled
with the headaches and heartaches
of rebuilding our lives.
Troops arrived the next day to take
the NBC crew to "safety." We took
pictures and they left with souvenir
Dome t-shirts and hats. I felt very
bonded with them and my
appreciation for the soldiers they
are has deepened into a
tremendous respect. Another silver
lining of this experience was the
After several days, the officials allowed the residents back on the beach. But the roads were such
a mess, people had to park at the core area and walk to their homes. I wept as I saw elderly
neighbors stumbling through the sand for a look at their homes. Lifetimes of memories swept
away in a moment. Residents really couldn't salvage much because of the long trek, in many
cases miles, to the core area. What you chose to save was relegated to what you were strong