I saw this story (video link) this morning on WRAL about an Aurora, N.C., seafood business, Carolina Seafood, that was “nearly washed away” by Hurricane Irene but rebuilt by owner Vance Henries. He initially had to lay off 60 workers in the wake of the hurricane, but over the last year he’s hired back nearly 50. A few items stood out:
“You have somewhat a responsibility to the community,” Carolina Seafood owner Vance Henries. “It’s not all about me. It’s about other people and doing what’s right for them.” …
On Aug. 27, 2011, Category 1 Irene perched over North Carolina for more than 12 hours, pushing the storm surge farther inland than previous hurricanes. In all, it caused more than $1.2 billion in damage in more than a third of North Carolina’s 100 counties.
Carolina Seafood was among the devastated homes and businesses.
“I just went to my knees and cried,” Henries remembered seeing the damage for the first time. “Walls were busted in. We had trees, floating trees, that had come in like torpedoes and just took walls out.” …
But after a tough year, Henries said he’s proud to have rebuilt his business without taking a single dime in government aid.
“We take what we can get. I know the good Lord will provide for us,” he said. “We’ll stay right here as long as we can.”
Here is WRAL’s report a year ago about Henries and the devastation to Carolina Seafood.
