"It was coming in really fast,” recalled the single mother of three, as she wiped away tears. “My son has an IV line in his chest and a feeding tube [that] he can’t get wet. And I was really scared.”

NORFOLK, Va. - Cheri’s fears were rising almost as fast as the floodwaters.

She was working in the kitchen when her son yelled that water was coming in the back door. Within minutes, her 1-year-old daughter was wading in knee-deep water.

“It was coming in really fast,” recalled the single mother of three, as she wiped away tears. “My son has an IV line in his chest and a feeding tube [that] he can’t get wet. And I was really scared.”

Earlier this year, storms flooded Cheri’s neighborhood in Norfolk, Va., filling homes with up to two feet of water and destroying carpet, walls, appliances and furniture.

“I couldn’t get to my son’s medicine. I couldn’t get to the baby’s milk. I couldn’t get to anything,” Cheri said. “How do you hold it together and tell your kids you’re going to be OK…when you really don’t know that answer?”

Volunteers installed new carpeting in Cheri's home in addition to replacing ruined drywall.

A day later, OBI staff and volunteers were there in the community helping residents. Local Home Depot stores also sent associates to volunteer with OBI and help gut damaged homes and replace ruined drywall.

For Cheri, it was an unexpected blessing.

“I just started crying because I knew,” Cheri said. “They said they were coming to help me and they were there to help.”

OBI crews stayed onsite for several weeks until all the work requests had been completed.

“Their help was not just because I have a medically dependent child,” Cheri said. “It’s because they’re Operation Blessing and blessing is the key part.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP
You can help by making an online donation toward OBI's disaster relief efforts. With your support, we can continue to provide emergency relief and recovery. Please make an on-line donation today.

 

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