![]() ![]() On Abaco Island in the Bahamas, after a hurricane a few years ago, our meals consisted of MREs (military prepackaged Meals Ready to Eat). Often, it is at a school gym, a warehouse, a church, or the fire station. Responding to a community that has suffered a disaster, it is understood that in most cases, the living conditions will range between being pretty rough (Red Cross cots) to simply hideous. None of the people helped are ever charged for anything. Our tools are provided by national tool manufacturers, vehicles by the “Big 3,” as well as rental agencies, and transportation is often donated by the airlines. ![]() We are supported by private and corporate donations. As such, we have all the necessary equipment, and are ready to deploy anywhere on (and off) the continent on a moment’s notice, to help communities in the first days of a disaster. We are not simply well intentioned folks who are given a shovel. If you’re not familiar with Team Rubicon, we are a group of volunteers, mostly (but not all) ex-military, aged 20 to 75, men and women, who are trained to be effective disaster responders. I got the call to grab my ‘GO’ bag (the other two are in France and in California) and head to the airport to join a strike team with Team Rubicon to 'save the world, one hurricane at a time.' Another hurricane, another disaster, and many more lives ruined. Skip ahead to September 2023, and the news of another Florida Hurricane named Idalia, and I wondered, just wondered … sure enough … Here is Michael’s 2023 story.] "Not Forgotten", Taylor County Florida Each month, I look forward to seeing what trouble these two are getting into – or coming from. He and his wife Janice, when not living on their beautiful little Honey Bee Island in the International Rift, are skipping back and forth between California and France. I am one of the lucky ones to receive Michael Laprade’s monthly newsletter, the Epistle. For one Islander though, Christmas 2021 was spent in a very different way. "Answer: Most of us visited with family and friends, even behind a mask. [Editor's Note: In April 2022, we published “So what did you do for Christmas?” I prefaced the article with an introduction, and I am reiterating that here.
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