REHOBETH, Ala. (AP) - Bill Henrich tries to keep upbeat. He stays busy, working to haul away the remains of his mobile home, which was destroyed by a storm last month. He tries not to think about the lives lost in there, instead choosing to focus on the new home he plans to build.
Much of the time, the work distracts him, but occasionally something sparks a memory and Henrich is overcome with loss.
“It’s tough,” he said. “You never think something like this is going to happen.”
Henrich’s home was destroyed on Jan. 2 when a storm caused an oak tree to fall on the trailer, where seven people were inside. Henrich said he had been getting ready to go to bed and everyone else had been watching an athletic event when the storm hit.
“There wasn’t much time to do anything,” he said. “The sirens were faint and then loud. The trailer picked up off of its foundation. Rocks started hitting it. The whole thing was shaking - there’s no safe place in a trailer.”
Henrich, his wife Lawana and Bobby Blair were fleeing the trailer when the tree fell. They survived. Ramona Michelle Lewis, Lawana’s sister; Mandy Blair, Lawana’s daughter; and friends Carla Lambert and Terina Brookshire, who were all hiding in the bathroom, were killed when the tree hit the home.
“They didn’t have a chance,” he said.
The storm was just the beginning of the ordeal for Henrich and his family. Next came the funerals. A GoFundMe account, a fundraiser at Cowboys and other donations assisted the family with the expenses. Henrich said he’s very grateful for all the support his family has received.
“Our neighbors have been great,” he said. “I feel so blessed by them.”
Other small blessings have also helped.
“On the day of the funerals one of our dogs had puppies,” he said. “That helped keep my mind off of it.”
After the funerals, the work of clearing away the wreckage of the trailer and finding a new place to reside began for Henrich and Lawana. The couple is currently staying in a n RV near the site of their old home. Henrich hopes to build a smaller home on the site of the old residence. He doesn’t want to ask for any help with the cost of a new home, but won’t turn away any assistance.
“All the trees are coming out,” he said. “We’re going to get a smaller building. It’ll be small, but nice.”
Henrich is amazingly upbeat for someone who has suffered the losses he has suffered. Originally from Michigan, Henrich moved south almost 20 years ago. He said the pace here is slower and the people friendlier.
“If I had known what the South was all about, I would have moved here in the 70s or 80s instead of the 90s,” he said.
Henrich met Lawana when she was working at a store near his home at the time. He needed coffee one day, visited the store and began a conversation with Henrich. A relationship grew from the conversation and Henrich and Lawana eventually married.
Henrich said finding the words to comfort his wife is difficult.
“She lost a sister and a daughter,” he said. “I can’t imagine what that’s like.”
The family had another scare a week ago when another storm blew through the area. Lawana and other friends took refuge in a storm shelter. Henrich, who suffers from claustrophobia, stayed in the RV.
Henrich admits that storms make him apprehensive.
“I have a hard time watching the Weather Channel,” he said.
Henrich, a carpenter and handyman by trade, says working on clearing out the old trailer and building a new home are helping him to heal. He plans to build a serenity garden behind the new home after it is complete.
“I try to go out every day and be positive,” he said. “It’s hard to be that way because we hurt yet.”
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Information from: The Dothan Eagle, https://www.dothaneagle.com
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