Paradise Lost: Lenny Sattani

Hi. My name is Jessica and I am creating this fundraiser for my father who lost everything last week in Hurricane Ian. He lives in Matlacha, Florida. We were told until the day before that we were not in the direct path of this storm, but what really happened is that we were in it's direct path, where it pummeled us for almost 9 hours with 150 mph winds, with 190 mph gusts. That is not to mention that the storm was 30 miles wide, moving at only 7 mph. It also hit during our high tides, creating a storm surge that instantly turned the roads and yards into an ocean, while debris flew around in the air and through the water.

During this storm, my father watched as the storm surge put his car under water past the bumper. Then he watched as it ripped his boat from a tree it was tied to, and flipped over, almost floating away. He watched as every tool and item he had in the garage floated away, including kayaks and bicycles. Worst of all, he watched the roof of his house tear off and water and mud to fill his house as the storm surge entered, when his door flew off. His appliances, bed, and clothing couldn't even be saved. So, he literally doesn't even have the clothes on his back to call his own. The worst part was when we woke up the next day after the storm, lucky to be alive, we were told there was no way off the island because the bridge had collapsed. We were told a bicycle couldn't even make it around, so even if my Dad could drive his car, he can't get to a grocery store. He had to be rescued by boat to get to the mainland, to try to figure out how to begin to rebuild with nothing.

Here is a story that my father, Lenny, was in from NPR that begins to explain a little bit of what happened.

https://www.npr.org/2022/10/04/1126806790/pine-island-matlacha-residents-return-hurricane-ian-florida

Thanks for taking time to read about this story and one example of the impact this storm has had. Please help or share if you can. This money will be used to help with food/water, a vehicle, and a place to live. It will also help with replacing things like furniture, clothing, and linens.