Defining community

I often use the word "community" when talking about one of the things I love most about Ocracoke. This week, multiple people have asked me to explain what I mean by that; to give them some examples of what the community does that is so meaningful to me. I just happen to have heard two great stories recently which are perfect illustrations.

Merle Davis told me about how her house was built. She was given the lot as a birthday gift (yes, really...this was before lots on Ocracoke were worth a small fortune), but did not have anything built on it for a while. She and her son would stay with friends, sometimes sleeping on couches, when visiting the island. Then Merle moved here full time to teach at the school, but still didn't have a home of her own. Until her students decided that simply was not acceptable. So they built the beginning of her place for her (a small house at first, it has been added to several times and is now much larger than the original). She said they had a "raising", similar to what the Amish do with barns, where a large group of students spent a weekend working together to put up the walls to create the shell of the house. They continued working on the project over the next while until the house was completed, including plubming and electricity. That's community.

The other story is more recent. Toward the end of last year, a lovely lady named Karen who lives on the island was diagnosed with cancer. (She has since received treatment and is doing very well, in case you're wondering. But that's not the point of this story.) Karen told me that her health insurance is through the water plant here on the island. In early December, the board of that company had voted to change insurance carriers, a move which would save the corporation money. When they heard about Karen's diagnosis, and the concern that there could be a lapse in coverage during the change, or that she might not be able to get insurance at all from the new company due to pre-existing conditions clauses, they voted NOT to change insurance carriers after all. That's community too.

So now you know what I mean! Hope you are surrounded by "community" in your life too, wherever you are.