Hatteras residents remain resilient

HATTERAS ISLAND, N.C. - Residents continue to pick up the pieces on Hatteras Island, after Hurricane Irene left some of the 4,300 people who call the island home were left with nothing.

Melinda Baker is one of those people. And even though her family is cut off and tired, there is hope.

"You know what, it's only stuff. You can't take it when you go, so it's just stuff. It's not who we are. It doesn't define us. It is just stuff," Baker said.

All that is left of the mother of four's home is an empty lot.

"Just a lot of flooding from the roof and from the floor, and it's gone. Home sweet home is gone," Baker said with a nervous laugh.

Right now, the family's belongings sit in a tent, "Everything we own, and this is a family of six, and it's now in the tent."

The destruction extends to Baker's church as well.

"Hurricane Irene came in, and this is the water line," Baker said as she showed 10 On Your Side a stained line three to four feet off the ground. Her family owns the Lifeboat Community Church in Salvo.

"This is everything we've got. We have no carpet, and our church is just a mess right now," Baker continued.

The only loss that bothers Baker is the toys her children no longer have. "For me the hardest thing was to bag up everything that belonged to my four children, and just put it out there [on the street.] It hasn't phased them at all," Baker added.

Baker isn't the only resident keeping up this positive and resilient attitude, it is everywhere on Hatteras Island.

"I don't look at it like I don't have anymore house. I look at it like what does God have in store for us to look forward to. It is a blank slate and we will see what it can be," Baker said.

If you would like to contact Lifeboat Community Church call 252-564-2439. You can also contact the Interfaith Community Outreach at 252-480-0070.