Rescued From a Retirement Nightmare
Panama City Beach, FL
Shortly after Denis and Kathy Dorman moved to Florida to retire, category 5 Hurricane Michael made landfall on the Florida Panhandle. They evacuated and had no idea what to expect when they returned home.
“The walls were looked like they were melting. It just like they were just disintegrating” says Kathy.
“The house was destroyed from the inside” says Denis. “The walls and the ceiling, everything had to come out once we started finding mold. We thought maybe it would be isolated. It wasn't. The more we pulled, the more we found. It all had to come out.”
Insurance covered removing some of the infected drywall, but not doing the rebuild. Denis had ongoing health problems that were getting worse. It didn’t help that they had to move into their garage.
Kathy says, “we had to use the bathroom in a five-gallon bucket. I mean, that was what we had. That was our bathroom, but at our age you, you really start to think, ‘Lord, are we gonna have to spend the rest of our days living in this garage?’ My husband was really depressed at that time, because he knew he couldn't do anything because of his health, and that took a toll on him greatly.
Denis decided to talk to God about it.
“I said ‘Father, I can't do this. I can't fix this. I can't do it. Would you please do it?’ The impression that I felt in my spirit was, ‘okay. All you had to do was ask’” says Denis.
Kathy and Denis didn't know how they were going to recover, but they continued to trust in God. Inspired by their dedication and faith, Pastor Cole of Lighthouse Church gave them a chance to share their testimony.
Kathy says, “God told me, ‘trust me; trust me.’ We never stopped tithing all through the hurricane, loss of jobs, loss of health; we never stopped. We trusted. So that night, I went online, and I posted my payment to the church – my ten percent – and what I had left over, I paid what bills we could. The next morning, I get a call; praise God. (clapping) I get a call from Operation Blessing. They said, ‘We want to rebuild your house.’” (clapping)
“All of a sudden, all these trucks pull up and people are working, and it was just unbelievable” says Kathy.
“An array of light broke through” says Denis. “We were smiling and laughing. I had something to be excited about. We had hope.”
With the support of Operation Blessing donors and volunteers, our team removed the mold, put in new drywall, floors, ceilings, and kitchen cabinets, and refinished two bathrooms.
“Sometimes, my husband and I just open the door and walk in, and we just, we just start crying” says Kathy. “Everything smells good. Everything is beautiful. You think about Heaven and what Heaven will be like, and I think that God gave us a taste of what Heaven will be like. People loving you, working together, wanting you to have the best. And when you, you say thank you, you say those words, but thank you could never be enough; never be enough for what was given to us.
