Irma Relief for friends in Anguilla

Ashley and I are getting married on September 23 and will be missing one of the guests we invited.  We were hopeful that our friend Junior could make it, but now we are hoping to send him and his wonderful family some support and love in their time of crisis. As you are well aware, Hurricane Irma was devastating.  This was particularly so in Anguilla, a tiny 16x3 mile island that had the eye pass directly over it while the winds were holding at 185 mph.  Ashley and I had the immense pleasure of visiting Anguilla last summer, being welcomed by Junior and his family as if we ourselves were a part of their family.  And before we get into what amazing people they are, it needs to be stressed, while they are physically okay, the island was destroyed and their lives were completely uprooted. Communications are down, the hospital is damaged, the electric grid is destroyed, fresh water and food are in short supply, and basically every structure severely damaged or ruined, and that's just a taste of the list of misfortune. So, we’re asking for anything you can offer to help our friends. We wish we could outline how much it will cost to support this family for the recovery period, but that’s an unknown. Getting aid to the island is already complicated, and will take in the least a month. So we ask that you can give anything you can with an arbitrary goal of $1000.

Now to tell you about the family we know and have grown to love. If you have ever been to Anguilla, you would know what a connected, loving community it is, and you have likely gone out on Junior’s glass bottom boat. This is his livelihood, which like most on the island, is dependent on tourism. Since Ashley’s first trip when she was 16, she has been lucky enough to spend almost a month with these amazing people. They have treated us to all the greatest local experiences, from taking us out on the boat everyday, driving us around, and feeding us their fresh caught fish.  They even let me have all the eyes and lips, even though it’s everyone’s favorite part! Anything we wanted to do, they made it happen. The bottom line is that these are special people with enormous hearts, so we are trying to help Ashley’s aunt send Junior, his mother, and his sister Maurine and her husband and two sweet hearted daughters some barrels of food and supplies.  In this time of celebrating our love, we hope that you can share your love with those who have opened their hearts and lives to us! Thank you!