Marty and Margie Osinski - Oral history from BRAHM listening day - Sept 20, 2025
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This story was submitted on December 4, 2025 by Admin
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- Marty and Margie Osinski - Oral history from BRAHM listening day - Sept 20, 2025
- Description
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This oral history interview features Marty and Margie Osinski, recorded on September 20, 2025, at the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum. The couple, who lived in Miami for many years and survived numerous hurricanes including Hurricane Andrew, moved to Blowing Rock full-time five years ago, believing they had escaped hurricane threats. They describe experiencing four days of heavy rain before Hurricane Helene hit, which saturated the ground and compounded the storm's impact. Despite having a whole-house generator installed a year and a half earlier, they faced challenges with limited propane supply (only an 85-gallon tank) and had to ration power usage. Living on high ground on a gravel road, they avoided flooding but witnessed rivers forming on either side of their house and significant road damage. Marty worked to make their road passable so propane delivery trucks could reach them during their eight-day power outage.
Rather than evacuating when a friend urged them to leave, the Osinskis chose to stay and help their community. They volunteered at The Summit in Boone, a pickleball facility whose owners (Crystal and Grant) shut down their business to create a major donation and distribution center. The couple spent several days organizing donations and delivering supplies to devastated areas including Spruce Pine, where they witnessed complete destruction—downed power lines for three-quarters of the drive, tree branches caught at the top of a 20-25 foot bridge indicating extreme water levels, and the same look of shock and displacement in people's faces that Margie remembered from Hurricane Andrew. They describe the remarkable organization of relief efforts, with donations pouring in from local communities, the National Guard, and beyond, covering every need from baby formula to pet food. Margie reflects on "survivor guilt" from both Andrew and Helene, emphasizing how staying to help prevented those feelings and reinforced her belief in community resilience. The Osinskis stress that people should never assume "it won't happen to me" and emphasize the importance of preparedness and remembering that human compassion transcends political divisions. - Spatial Coverage
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