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Transcript |
BLACKMAN: ...If you could speak a little bit to us...how did you get through all of this?
JOLLEY: (Laughs) First of all, the grace of God. The neighbors were more than fantastic. Now, while I was tryin’ to get my family out, we were trying to get some other neighbors out also. The other next door neighbors, who, the house that I went to--after we went to his house, he went, goin’, lookin’ for other people. Two, three houses down from me, one man headed out; the water was so swift, he got-- He was able to catch a tree, and climb up in a tree. The other people where, I told you, the car was standing up, the water was up to the gables of their house. One of the neighbors finally got a boat and got them, ‘cause the fire department hadn’t got to that area yet. Uh, I mean, neighbors--if you didn’t know your neighbors, you knew ‘em by that time, ‘cause everybody stuck together.
The next day, that Monday, when people started to goin’ through the house and everything, and what’s what, uh, there was this one particular church, but it was a lady who lived up the street that was not affected. She found a little spot where--it was gonna be a street; we called it ‘ the little dead end,’ where everybody just parked, or whatever--she set up a tent, and they cooked food right there (low beeping sound heard) on the spot, for everything—
BLACKMAN: Tyrone, when we left off, you were talking about the lady down the street had set up a tent with her church—
JOLLEY: Her church, and she--she’s known to be a good cook anyway--but anyway, they set up feeding everybody in the area.
And uh, then, once people started assessing what happened, because the news only talked about Bellevue--”Bellevue, Bellevue”--and the Opryland area, and there were many areas, and our area was hit very hard, just as bad, and it was almost like a tidal wave. Because my neighbor told me that, “well, you know, about a hour after you left, the water just subsided.” You know, just that quick. And I’m sure you’ve heard the stories of what happened around West Hamilton and up the street, where one of the houses was just uplifted off the foundation--so we, we were there.
The next few days, uh, what hit us, what helped us, was church--my local church, the local churches in the area, and everybody just, uh-- I mean, they just--I don’t even know--they called it “organized,” but they just used one or two churches as a headquarters, and it just happened. I couldn’t tell you what’s what, but, uh, when I say that my church family, my local church family, I mean, they were more than jewels. Other members of our church--or who we call the connectional church or extended church--I mean, they were just as, just as, as helpful.”... |
