By Hillary Bonner | Director of Operations
When the St. John Long Term Recovery Team (LTRT) began this campaign with GlobalGiving, we had the home of one vulnerable resident under construction. Now, nine months later, we have completed five homes and are currently working on 13 more. LTRT started the overwhelming task with one VI licensed contractor. We now operate with six construction teams and 5 All Hands and Hearts voluntary labor teams. We push forward and escalate the program in order to get as many of our community members safely back in their homes as quickly as possible. We do that with the generous support of donors like you.
The impact of a "blue roof" cannot be fully expressed to someone who has never truly experienced life in a disaster zone. As the ebb and flow of tourism breathes life into our re-emerging economy, the blue dots lining the horizon are lost to those in search of sunsets and happy hours. Each of these tarps represent a person or family who still, 17 months after Irma devastated St. John, lie in bed at night wondering if they will be awoken by the rain falling into their damaged home. They wonder if their water will work when they wake up in the morning or if the extension cord providing limited power will be enough to keep food cold in the fridge.
The LTRT's Disaster Case Management team is currently reviewing 80 construction related cases, in addition to those already completed or under construction. There are others out there who we have not yet seen that will eventually come forward for help. Hurricane Irma damaged or destroyed 74% of St. John’s low and middle income homes and the costs associated with rebuilding are astronomical. We average $140,000 for a 1200 square foot home with 50% or less damage. The majority of our clients are seniors who survive solely on social security funds. There would be little to no chance of them ever returning home without the assistance of the LTRT’s rebuild program.
The LTRT stepped in to launch this program when it became increasingly clear that government subsidized programs were not going to provide effective and efficient assistance to our community. Our clients were experiencing disaster fatigue with no hope for the future as they were bounced between FEMA, SBA and Emergency Home Repair VI. Now, with so many construction projects completed or underway, there is a glimmer of light in their eyes when they walk into the office. Elderly community members are returning to restored and resilient homes, built better than were before.
Standing in her newly reconstructed home, a former school teacher looked around in awe with an unforgettable smile on her face. When she and her son were being evacuated by boat between Irma and Maria, he told her they would probably never be able to rebuild the family home that she had designed with her late husband. Now, she works to restore her once beautiful gardens surrounding the house that she thought she would never call home again.
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