It didn’t make sense. How were they still alive?
Every room in their mobile home was touched by a F4 tornado that ripped through their community of Lee County, Alabama, on March 3—except the master bathroom where they happened to take shelter.
“It’s like someone had their hand on this house. There’s just damage all around,” Billy Graham Rapid Response Team (RRT) chaplain Steven Silverman told homeowners Sondra and Richard Widger. He’d come to their neighborhood with his wife, Patty, to check on those who lived through the storm.
Overturned cars, stripped trees, debris and foundations of homes were remnants of what once was along the street, where 12 people died due to twisters. The Widgers’ home—still in one piece—appeared to be the only place somewhat spared.
The couple took cover with their two dogs in their master bathroom when they saw rain coming down sideways and noticed wind picking up speed. Racing to safety, they didn’t have time to put on their jackets or shoes.
Sondra hopped inside their garden tub while Richard threw pillows over her. Shielding her body with his, he did all he could to protect his wife.
“We didn’t have a clue [it was coming],” Sondra said.
Standing on the shattered window glass that now cover their green carpet, she recalled thinking her life was going to end.
“I just thought we were going to be picked up,” Sondra said. Multiple homes on her street flew off their foundations and were ripped to shreds.
>> See photos of Lee County, Alabama.
“There’s some reason God spared you,” Patty said. “You’re going through the grieving process. We encourage you to do that. God created us to be emotional people—to cry and be angry when we need to.”
Sondra nodded as chainsaws buzzed outside, replacing the splitting screams of her neighbors days before.
A family with two little boys had lived next door, including 6-year-old Armando “A.J.” Hernandez who passed away in the destruction.
Minutes after the storm, Sondra found A.J.’s older brother injured and fighting consciousness. She quickly slipped her grandson’s rubber boots on him and got him up the street to first responders.
However, the storm wasn’t over; another tornado was headed their way. Live power lines surrounded the Widgers’ street, along with the strong smell of propane gas. Fearing something would explode and realizing they no longer had adequate shelter, the couple headed to a nearby church.
Soaking wet, they rode out the storm alongside some of their extended family, including their 18-year-old grandson who kicked down the locked church door.
After the storm was finally over that night, Sondra couldn’t close her eyes. She’d previously lost her home in a house fire and had to start over again, but this was different.
She could replace the items in a home, but not her memories of enduring the horrific storm.
“There’s a reason we were untouched other than bumps and bruises,” she said, turning to Patty.
She just hasn’t figured out why yet.
“God will let you know that reason when He’s ready,” Patty encouraged.
>> Are natural disasters an instrument of God’s judgment? Find out Billy Graham’s answer.
In the meantime, Sondra explained she hasn’t “stopped to take it all in.” With her kitchen ceiling caving in and damage throughout her house, she’s spent her days sorting through her belongings.
In between, she’s been taking her insulation-filled clothes to the laundromat, talking with her insurance agency and trying to figure out her finances, all the while missing work.
Despite the days to come of slowing down and processing all that took place, she recognizes what’s important in life.
“Family is all that matters—and God,” Sondra said.
Can you rely on God in the midst of life’s storms? Trust Him today.
