Overcomers

BY TINA V. BRYSON

The water kept rising and rising, higher and higher. And there was nothing Michael Caudill could do to save his home or his mother’s home across the street. They were no match for Mother Nature, who was determined to swallow everything in her path with a deluge that swelled the Appalachian creeks. Caudill sat on higher ground with his family, as the water, inch by inch, washed away the life he and his wife had worked so hard to build.

“I had lost my dad in May, so there was a lot going on,” said Caudill, whose family got to know the Home Repair staff from Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) when his parents’ home was repaired in 2015. “We had flood insurance, but we had to fight for four months just to get that first check to start. CAP brought materials for my mom. So, I would work a day or two at my house, then drag my tools across the street, and work a couple of days there. I was exhausted.”

Jamie Conley, who was the manager of Home Repair in Johnson, Floyd, and Martin Counties, called Caudill to assess the needs of the family and determine how CAP could help. Because there were so many homes in CAP’s service area that needed repairs, she had to figure out how best to meet those needs.

“We had approximately 100 homes to evaluate in the beginning, and that list continued to grow,” Conley said, remembering an elderly man who refused to believe that the home he’d lived in his entire life was beyond repair. “We wanted to be able to help everyone in this tragedy, of course, but in some cases, that was not possible.”

Since the Caudills were getting materials from CAP, the family decided to help Michael’s mom first. Conley had seen their homes submerged in water on the local news and remembered helping the family in 2015. “They were still mourning, and now they were displaced from their homes. My heart just broke for them. Michael wanted to get his mother back into her home as soon as possible to feel closer to his father.”

Seeing the stress Caudill was under trying to repair both homes, Conley called to offer him hands-on help to fix his home. That help would come from WorkFest, CAP’s alternative spring break service opportunity for college students.

“I was trying to use some of the flood money from my house to help my mother,” Caudill explained. “When Jamie called, that took such a burden off my shoulders. To have these volunteers come out, to me, they are angels sent to help us.”

Conley added, “Michael was always taking care of everyone else. His selfless attitude and humble nature inspired me. I felt more than honored that we were able to help them. Michael gives so much to his family and his community. I look forward to the day I can see him and his family back into their home.”

Caudill works for the state highway department, and he remembers the details of the night the devastating destruction began well. There was a mudslide, and he had been called in to help at about 1 a.m. He said it didn’t feel right. When the rain came down, the creeks rose so fast, it had no place to go. Within two hours, the water had risen and started to cover the roads. He knew he had to make sure his family was safe. “The road past my house became a river. The water moved trailers. It was unreal,” Caudill said.

Although their home is 6 feet off the ground, when he arrived, the water on the sidewalk was already at his ankles. He woke his family and started to get them in the truck that he had moved to higher ground.

“We were walking out. When we hit the bottom step, my 13-year-old daughter, she had her belongings — it was up to my knees — I heard her holler, ‘Dad, I can’t move!’ I realized that she was in shock. There was so much water, and it was so dark. I carried her to the truck. My family was safe on the bank up from the house,” Caudill recalled.

College students from across the country helped make steady progress in repairing the Caudills' home during CAP’s annual WorkFest event. The home was stripped down to the studs and has been rebuilt on the inside. The home repair project is expected to be completed this fall.

“I called our neighbor — he’s the mayor — woke him up, and tried to help him move his belongings. It was already at my waist. When it reached my chest, I told him that had to be our last load. We sat on that bank almost 10 hours before the water went down,” Caudill said, as he began to choke up remembering the traumatic event. “There’s nothing you can do but sit and watch everything you’ve worked for wash away.”

The Caudills’ home was among the 10 homes repaired during WorkFest. Volunteers provided 5,440 hours of service. Half of those projects were completed at that time, with the remainder expected to be completed by the fall.

“To the donors, to the people coming out helping, to the recovery teams from all across the country, thank you,” Caudill added. “We have elderly people in the community that have gone through this for more than 60 years. It’s not much, but it’s home. This is such a close-knit community. You don’t just up and leave that because you’re leaving family. We choose to overcome.”