Helen Schroeder knows all about hurricanes. And pain. More than you or me. Much more than anyone ever should.
She left her home in Slidell, La., a day before Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. Her house, and two cars, were destroyed. Since early September, Schroeder has been in Naples, where her sister lives. She’s been staying at a local hotel. She hasn’t been back home.
But Friday, another storm, this time Wilma, was forcing her to flee again. Back home. To nothing. No house, no belongings. But at least it’s safe.
It helps to mention what else Schroeder has dealt with in 2005: Surgery on her brain, following a bad spill from a ladder. Surgery on her hip after that. Then Katrina. Now Wilma.
Schroeder, 72, said she feels like she’s being chased. And enough’s enough.
“The storm seems to be following me,” she said. “I’ve had a bad year. Really, really too much.”