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Mount Miguel Residents Celebrate Their Return Home
SAN DIEGO, CA (November 13, 2007) – More than 400 people attended Mount Miguel Covenant Village’s “Thank You Celebration” on Friday as residents expressed their gratitude for the help they received when the campus was evacuated earlier this month during the California wildfires.
Residents were evacuated October 22 to a local high school and later to a church before returning October 25. Roughly 120 residents from the independent living units were evacuated to the school. Others residents in assisted living and skilled nursing facilities were transferred to care facilities around the city.
The Thank You event began with lunch followed by several speakers and a video presentation. Residents also had time to personally thank volunteers. The retirement community put a tent over its tennis courts and laid carpeting for the event.
One of the speakers was newscaster Stan Miller, who first reported the story of the evacuation to San Diego High School and the need for meals and cots. “He put out the need, and that caused the avalanche” of items being donated, says Lyne Brownwood, marketing director of Mount Miguel.
Miles McPherson, senior pastor of Rock Church in Point Loma, also spoke. Residents spend their final night away from Mt. Miguel at the church. The move was made due to worsening air quality at the school caused by the fires.
Among the other attendees were emergency medical personnel, representative from the local City Council, and Habitat for Humanity, which had donated numerous meals and cots while the residents were at the high school.
More than 40 residents gave a vocal performance during the event. For the occasion, they changed the words to traditional songs—the new lyrics reflected their experience of the evacuation.
“It was probably one of the most fun and memorable events we have had on our campus....There were tears of joy” among many of the participants, Brownwood says.
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
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