Recently, two Daily Kos staff members landed in Puerto Rico to meet with some of us here who are dealing with the ongoing devastation. I know beyond any doubt that readers will be very proud of their efforts.
Quick recap of activities so far:
After picking up Daily Kos’ Kelly Macias at the airport on Sunday, and winding our way through the “recovered” city of San Juan where no traffic light are working (imagine what it would be like to drive in any major metropolitan city with no traffic lights and no cops to be found) we had lunch at Tostados together with the founder of Water for Puerto Rico, Alejandro Calaf and the volunteer coordinator of NGO relief efforts on the island, Michelle Ukulele. Also joining us was the reception crew who are my best friends Gerardo Mendez and Franco Gotay. We had a great time with really great people, and after lunch I took the opportunity to invite them to our Daily Kos meetup. Here’s Michelle, Kelly and Alejandro!
Early Monday morning Kelly left for Vieques where she spent the day with the owner of Restaurante Bili delivering food to those in need as well as interviewing locals. She’ll be writing about the details of her experiences there and I can’t wait for her full report!
While Kelly was in Vieques, my friends and I picked up Daily Kos’ Chris Reeves in the afternoon and we stopped at Bebo’s in Santurce for another welcome-to-the-island meal. As you can probably tell, welcoming guests to the island always involves our great cousine and, especially now, supporting our local restaurants. Chris posted a story about his experience here, some experiences definitely better than others, and I know we all wish him a speedy recovery!
Here’s the welcoming crew, Franco and Gerardo at Bebo’s with Chris!
Monday evening we all got together again at Patio de Sam in Old San Juan for our first ever Daily Kos meetup in Puerto Rico! I wish we were gathering under better circumstances, but even Maria couldn’t stop us from having a really good time. Franco took the pic, and seated are Alejandro, Chris, Alejandro’s guest Mia, me, Michelle, Kelly and Gerardo. Mia is on the island to help with relief efforts and film a documentary about ordinary citizens making a difference and I’m so happy that we all could meet. Our nearly 4-hour dialogue was amazing and I’m so proud to have Kelly and Chris here with us.
Due to the insanity of what we’re living through, sometimes it was heartbreaking listening to the different experiences of being here in the aftermath of Maria – it couldn’t be helped, it’s a part of our lives now. But, this wasn’t a solemn get together at all! We laughed, we ate and drank over great conversations and we got to know one another better in spite of everything going on beyond the walls of the restaurant. Strong bonds were formed and I’m not exaggerating by saying that we made friends for life.
On to the next activity!
Yesterday’s mission, and the focus of this story, was us traveling to the interior of the island to help a senior in desperate need. I’m so sorry to have to bring everyone back to the reality of what we are actually living through…
Chris let me know before he arrived that he wanted to roll up his sleeves and get to work so that’s exactly what we did. In preparation for Chris’ arrival, Gerardo and I traveled to Utuado, PR to begin our search for someone in need of help. The small municipality in the interior mountains of the island was hit especially hard, and many of the residents there are still without power, some without water, for the past 130 days and counting. Their situation remains dire, no matter the “alternative facts”. I’m so thankful that Chris could see this with his own eyes.
After meeting with the mayor’s office and the Director of Emergency Management, they led Gerardo and I to a senior citizen, Don Feliberto Maldonado López. We finally made it to what’s left of his home and spent the rest of the afternoon with him, listening to his experience and taking the first steps towards his recovery. Gerardo and I looked at one another in shock and agreed that we had no choice but to help, we simply couldn’t turn our backs on him. I’ve presented this case to Chris and now I’m presenting it to the community.
Don Feliberto is in desperate need. Even though I know there are thousands upon thousands across the island living in horrific conditions and I wish we could help them all immediately, my guiding principle through this horror has been to reach one heart at a time. Even though this responsibility should be shouldered by our government, I think everyone here is painfully aware of our government’s indifferent, unforgivable response. I also think we all know that if we pull together, we can accomplish amazing things. I’m convinced that the Daily Kos community and readers can make a huge difference in this man’s life and that’s why I’m publishing this today.
I’d like to introduce you to Don Feliberto Maldonado López
Don Filiberto is seventy-three years old and lives alone with his cat, Rayos, in the home he has loved for the past 60 years. I still don’t know how he survived the hurricane in that house as the eye passed directly over his head. He’s lost every possession he once had, all sucked out when the winds ripped off his roof, and he remains without power or water since the beginning of this crisis. When we arrived the only food he had was a single box of rations that FEMA has just delivered to him the previous day and 2 unopened cases of bottled water. The neglect of so many lives on this island is almost unbearable.
The most amazing thing, however, was that he was still in good spirits and greeted us with a huge smile, welcoming two complete strangers into what was left of his home.
In the past four-and-a-half months Don Feliberto has only had two visits by the city work crew and one by FEMA just a little over 2 weeks ago. He’s been completely cut off with no communication – it took us a good half-hour to convince him it was Thursday and not Monday. He had no idea what time of day it was and it even took him a few minutes to remember his own birthday. I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s been like for him – a senior citizen with multiple health problems surviving on his own for four-and-a-half-months in the dark. Constantly running through my head was, “this could be my parents, my grandparents” and I was devastated and furious at the same time. For as long as I live I’ll never forget when he finally broke down and it all came pouring out. Like I told Denise Oliver Velez on the phone while we were on the way home, it’s like this nightmare just won’t end. Again, she had to talk me down from letting my emotions overwhelm me. The suffering and injustice that so many Puerto Ricans are experiencing is just too much to adequately describe with words.
I’m grateful that the city has sent workers to put strips of wood and a tarp on what’s left of the roof, but, they’ve had to come 2 times because the tarps they’ve been provided to distribute to the citizens begin leaking almost immediately. The blue hue inside is very familiar, but I can’t ever get used to the emotions that it provokes – the filtered light is almost like a shroud that makes the sadness inside even worse. I really don’t know how else to explain it.
I wish you could have seen Don Feliberto’s face when he saw us again – he lit up with the biggest smile. He hugged Gerardo and I and just said over and over again, “I knew you’d be back, I just knew it”. There were lots of happy tears as we introduced him to Chris and the rest of the volunteers.
I’m beyond thankful that our new friends Michelle and Mia enthusiastically volunteered to join us, they were amazing. Michelle brought Don Feliberto a donated queen-size air mattress along with clean sheets and pillows, so now he doesn’t have to struggle getting up off the floor where he was sleeping on a moldy mattress with no bed frame. She also brought him donated food, water, a camp shower and new batteries for his flashlight. Great news is that through her connections she has secured a new 7 h.p. gas powered water pump for his well!!! Like I said, she’s amazing. I feel blessed to have crossed paths with someone so dedicated to our recovery efforts.
Gerardo, Michelle and I completely lost it when after setting up his new bed, Don Feliberto told us through tears, “you’ve made me feel like a millionaire”. It was an emotional day.
Here’s Michelle, Don Feliberto and Mia!
We formed 2 work crews, one taking on the challenge of cutting our way down an overgrown “path” to the well, and the second crew had cleanup detail at and around the house.
I joined Michelle and Franco on the “machete crew” clearing a path through the overgrown forest to Don Feliberto’s well, with Don Feliberto himself joining us because he was the only one who knew where the well was located! He definitely gave us much needed lessons in using the machetes… even at 73 years old he could cut through a 4” downed limb with only 2 swings! Unfortunately, we only made it about a quarter-mile down the old trail before we started losing light so there’s a lot of work left to do. We still have about an eighth of a mile to go to reach the well which is his only source of water, and then we’ll have to run about 2000’ of new PVC pipes back to the house because they were destroyed by the uprooted and downed trees, but, we’ll definitely get there. İPa’lante!
Franco and Don Feliberto blazing a trail back down to the well!
Here’s me and Michelle taking a break in the forest (that’s really a smile on my face, a little facial paralysis won’t stop me LOL!)
Franco “El Machete” Gotay
Back at the house Chris, Gerardo and Mia worked hard on cleaning up the huge amount of debris left by Maria and they all did an incredible job. By the time the rest of us made our way back up the mountainside the place looked so much better. Even though we had just met at the Meetup the night before, Mia worked her heart out for Don Feliberto and I’m forever grateful.
The crew up at the house were also in charge of the inspection (Gerardo is a FEMA inspector recently, and unexpectedly, released from his deployment on the island) and they took all the measurements needed so we can start replacing the roof, windows, doors, wiring, kitchen…
Don Feliberto’s makeshift “kitchen”...
Chris, Franco, Mia, Michelle and Gerardo… what an inspiring group of people, I know all of you would be so proud of our combined efforts for Don Feliberto.
Here they are outside of Andares Rest. In Utuado, after fueling up and on our way to bring Don Feliberto a great hot meal…
Although long and exhausting, it was an incredible day at Don Feliberto’s and we stayed working until the sun went down, the rain started and the coquis began singing. These partings are always so bittersweet — happy and proud of what we accomplished and heartbreaking that we had to leave Don Feliberto in the dark. Soon we’ll be able to leave him with the lights on, I just know it. That’s a day where there’ll be no bitterness and we’ll really celebrate!
On our 2 ½ hour drive back from Utuado we stopped in Toa Alta so that Michelle could deliver on a promise to bring food and water to another suffering family. While there she and Gerardo helped Doňa Luz go through her documents for FEMA with the rest of us holding up our cell phone lights so they could see. We were standing in her kitchen but getting rained on because there was no longer a house around us. One of the last things she showed us was her new bill for the kitchen cabinets, and she couldn’t hold back her tears… she still has 4 installments left and the company was demanding payment…
Although we were in a different municipality and only minutes outside of the San Juan Metro Area, the devastation was just the same as it was in the interior of the island – no lights, nearly impassable roads, home after home destroyed, suffering people with no real help in sight. Mile after mile after mile of the same heartbreak.
Regardless of the challenges in front of us, it’s time for my friends and I to get back to work. Of course, rebuilding an entire home was impossible during the one day that Chris was here with us, but, Gerardo, Franco and I have made a solemn vow to Don Feliberto that we’ll never abandon him. We’ll be spending many, many, many, many weekends in the mountains doing our best to lift Don Feliberto up and restore his home the best we can, and we really need your help to make it happen. By the time Chris returns in June I’m determined he will find an incredible transformation at Don Feliberto’s in Utuado. I know we can do this!
Right now there are immediate needs that really must be met and I’m humbly asking for your support.
We need a generator and continuing fuel supply for Don Feliberto so he can finally have lights again until the “powers that be” reach his home and restore electricity. The Director of Emergency Management could not confirm for us when power will finally be restored, and a new hurricane season is quickly approaching. This is all so unbelievable.
He desperately needs a functioning refrigerator and gas stove so he can once again keep food in the house and cook for himself.
Don Filiberto needs a proper bed. With all the destruction everywhere we looked, seeing his “bed” hit me harder than anything else. As I mentioned above, he has been sleeping on a mattress covered in mold directly on the concrete floor because Maria washed away every single tile in the house. I’m so thankful for the top-of-the-line air mattress provided by Michelle, but, it’s not a permanent solution, especially not for a senior citizen in poor health.
He needs clothes, 34”W x 30”L, medium shirts and underwear, socks, size 10 shoes – everything he has is covered in mold, even the clothes he was wearing when we met.
He needs every household item imaginable because he has nothing left.
When I tell you the devastation, as well as his abandonment up to this point, was complete, I am not exaggerating in the least. Though it broke my heart for Chris to see such destruction, I appreciate beyond words that he had the determination to see this with his own eyes and put his back into working for Don Feliberto’s recovery.
I know this is a lot to ask of my friends here at Daily Kos, I’m only hoping we can rise to the challenge and do our best. As I mentioned, Chris will be returning to the island in June and I’m determined to do us all proud by the time he arrives again.
It’s been suggested that I put together an Amazon “Wish List” so I’ll begin working on that asap and get that info to any who are interested. There are shipping restrictions with Amazon so it can only be small items, but anything will be deeply appreciated.
Larger items can be purchased and shipped at your local Home Depot, Costco or Sam’s and we can pick them up here on the island. I understand some here are now boycotting Home Depot and many more who refuse to deal with WalMart (Sam’s), however, they are among the only open and easy to reach places on the island right now so I pray that those of you who wish to purchase items and have them shipped can make an exception for us. Please.
For those wishing to donate funds to our continuing efforts please Kosmail me for details. So many of our immediate needs can only be supported by cash donations – food, water, fuel for generators, building supplies, paying experienced construction help even if it’s only gas money and lunch – we just couldn’t do this for Don Feliberto without your help.
Thanks from the heart for everyone who has already supported Puerto Rico’s recovery, and I hope that you find our efforts for Don Feliberto a worthy cause. Perhaps he’ll be only the first of many that the Daily Kos community “adopts” as we work together to rebuild Puerto Rico.
Please know that those of us here on the island will never give up – let the White House abandon us completely, we couldn’t care less. We will rise no matter what.
Sending my love,
Bobby
The only thing Don Feliberto has still hanging on his walls, please help us make his house a home again
Special thanks to Michelle for a couple of the photos, she’s the greatest!