Monroe County Special Needs Shelter at FIU

Monroe County Special Needs Shelter at FIU

Just got your News Blast most every one is asleep so will share the news blast when lights come on. We have about 145 Special needs residents of Monroe County here in Parking Garage 6 aka Dan Murino building. All the staff excepting one. Have been the utmost professionals. Kindness is the majority morality of everyone staff and residents alike.

Steve- bought everyone of our older residents hamburgers. I had my son bring over the pre-cooked ham and chickens I cooked before coming up to shelter. I thought they would be going to my son and his dormmates, My son like 700 other Florida International University students had to stay in the student shelter during the storm and now are back in their dorms. For the students the “Fresh Cafe” is open to use their meal plan. We had the precooked in package ham and two baked chickens Monday with the MREs. Tuesday, Publix was open so I went and got chicken and red beans with rice. Since the evacuation we had been on day 7 of: breakfast – apple and two crackers and a protein bar; lunch – half a sandwich; dinner – MREs. Thursday when the doctors, nurses and my personal hero the pharmacist came in from the Department of Health and Saftey they brought food that was donated and made into boxes that contain a lot of food and make up 3 meals and have some snack time items as well. We definately are so appreciative of these meals from Amarica and you can see the unboxing video I did on my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/hbethany I have all my photos and live videos some with interviews of the shelter residents. I do warn if you are offended by profanity don’t watch, ESPECIALLY don’t watch when I had to drive out of the keys myself cause I was talking and cussing the whole way cause it kept me from thinking about how much pain I was in.  Anyone is welcome to use my footage and photos.

If anyone wants to send anything to the Special Needs Shelter things we NEED, clothing several sizes and both genders. We have one as shes herself ‘fluffy’ and so far only one of my sleep shirts was able to fit her but it is really tight.and is hurting her arms. We have some very thin people that need the smallest sizes. If you look at my photos there is a beautiful lady in a white beret and a black sweater over a black and white striped top, her 95th birthday was  Tuesday and we all celebrated her with bottled water and crackers. We have two 95 year olds and a 92 year old.

The hardest hit by this are our elderly. The MREs and Boxed ‘Food For A Day’ are made more for the younger that need that high carbohydrate type of meal but because our elderly are mostly sedentary they need low fat/high protein meals.  We have two with celiac disease that all I know they can’t have wheat? not sure what they need I brought my pantry’s canned goods so told her to look through and find what she needs and there were vegetables she could eat.  We need fresh fruits and vegitables for between main meals for most here because they can’t eat a lot as it is and then having too much carbs and salt is making them feel sicker.

FEMA got us a Microwave and a large coffee pot. If anyone has microwaveable items we can now cook them, YEAHHH!! Oatmeal with fruit would be a real treat. For the people that can’t eat oatmeal they can have a double serving of fruit.  We have a great network here of Conchs helping Conchs (hey I only need two more years to be a Freshwater Conch but maybe I can get cut a break and get it early lol)

Some of the Key Largo evacuees have been able to leave and others that had family in other areas have been cleared to go.  From the CNN coverage my house on Big Pine only looks like siding and all the shingles over my son’s room part of the roof were ripped off but that is okay cause my son is here at FIU for the school year and he brought all his electronics so if his room leaks it shouldn’t be damaging anything important other than his HS letter and Mensa Membership certificate are on that wall.
Doesn’t look like the wall with his enlistment in the Conch Republic Navy is without shingles.

Some of us have been able to get medications we need. They also have people that are part of the safety and clean up group are going into people’s homes to make sure they can g home. These social services workers are also getting medications and medical devices like oxygen tanks, wheel chairs, chargers for medical devices, and special die items.  For Special needs they only tell you to bring a weeks worth and even then for those that had to evacuate on the buses some were having to leave supplies they were trying to bring because there wasn’t enough room. So now we have heard ‘rumors that we can get home in any where from a week to a month.

I was stuck in bed because my back and neuropathy had had enough of me running around but yester day I was able to get up a little more so will be adding more photos and interviews.

College Optical I need to give a huge shout out because he has been so very kind and was fixing our glasses FOR FREE!!