Help Christine King Rebuild Her Home

Those of us who live in the city of Key West have so much to be grateful for, today more than ever. Many of us left our homes with a category five hurricane pointed right at us, and we had to decide which possessions we could fit into our cars along with our children and pets.  Our children had to decide which toys they would bring, knowing that those left behind they may never see again.  As we took part in the largest evacuation in US history, none of us knew what was next and we all feared that we would have nothing left to return to when the storm was over.

In Key West, we received a small miracle. The storm caused no major flood damage and the wind, for the most part, only knocked down trees, tree limbs and made a huge mess of the landscaping.  Personally, I’ve never been so happy to do landscape cleanup in my life! Now that our children are comfortably sleeping in their own bedrooms again, and we are back to the lives we love so much, we need to do what we can for those who were less fortunate.

I had the opportunity to volunteer in Big Pine and Ramrod Key helping people clean up, and the destruction some of these neighborhoods sustained was just brutal.  So many people need help, and I would like to find ways to pay forward not only our good fortune, but the compassion we witnessed when strangers opened their homes to us as we ran with no idea of how we would survive the total loss that some of the Lower and Middle Keys saw.

In the spirit of the compassion that was extended to us, I would like to share one woman’s story. Christine King is a US Air Force Veteran who is also challenged with Multiple Sclerosis.  You’ll see from her picture that she was a part of the Old Island Restoration Foundation  conch shell blowing contest so maybe you might recognize her. Christine’s mobile home in Big Pine Key was completely destroyed and consequently condemned, as you can see in the images below. Not only does that leave her homeless, but also in debt for the balance of the mortgage and the costs to rebuild.  Christine is hoping to rebuild with the help of FEMA and shooting to build to newer safer codes with a little help and support

Christine has allowed us to share her story, and I can tell you in this situation, anything would help; just compassion alone means so much to people in these moments of crisis in life. Donations to help Christine get back on her feet can be made at Youcaring.com under “Help Christine King Rebuild”.

We wanted to see if we could support her and get the message out as she tries to figure out what’s next and being rebuilding her home and her life.

The storm has brought out the best in many people, and there are so many amazing positive storm stories about people helping each other. It has been incredible to see real human compassion in action. I truly hope Christine gets the support she needs to rebuild. Please help in any way you can.

Scott Forman & The Royal Palms Realty Team