Grit & gumption

I’ve never known a hero who wasn’t humble. I’ve never known one who didn’t have grit and gumption.

I have a story about my friend Cathie Brown to tell you this week. She has a heart that wears boots and a hard hat. She is part of Team Rebound, which searches and rescues during major disasters.

On Friday, after a flight to Tampa was canceled due to Hurricane Helene, I was rebooked on a late-night flight. After six delays, I was supposed to arrive at 1:30 on Saturday morning. Cathie saw my Facebook post.

I got a text from Cathie. She was in the area and would not let me say no to her rescuing me in the wee hours of the morning.

If you know Cathie, you know she can be a bit stubborn. However, her grit and gumption allow her to make a difference in the lives of those who endure major disasters. For 25 years, she has shown up to help in the relief of hurricanes, fires, and even 9/11.

Cathie walked Ground Zero after 9/11. Some of her stories are too personal and too hard to tell. She walked Maui when the fires devastated Lahaina. She knows all too well the power of a hurricane. She has seen, first hand … and heart, the effects of Katrina, Andrew, and Ian. She knows all too well the hurricane alphabet. Now, she is helping those affected by Helene.

Cathie shows up. I should type Cathie SHOWS UP.

I asked her many questions as we shared a late breakfast on Saturday. I agreed to her picking me up if she would stay at our house in Tampa until she was deployed to her next assignment. Stubborn meets stubborn. I told her I was going to write about her. She kept saying, “Don’t make me out to be a hero.” How can I not but do so?

Cathie held onto a rope as it hoisted people caught in a water current. It’s hard for me to think of my friend dangling from a helicopter. She was in an RHIB (Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat) that rescued 18 people stranded in a neighborhood during Helene. She’s back at it today.

Cathie will tell you she’s just a lady who lives in Fishers, Indiana, and wants to help people. She said it’s a gift that she needs to use. What a gift she has been given!

I peeked into the back of her Expedition, and there was her sleeping bag and pillow. She often sleeps in a tent. The back of her Expedition has stories. Every inch is packed with what she might need in the middle of nowhere or where everything is gone. She leaves home when the orders are given as to where she is going, yet she never knows what she will encounter or for how long. She says the survivor stories break her heart.

She hates being called a hero. She says it’s just that she is doing what she is meant to do.

She wears her hard hat well.

Please say a prayer for my stubborn, gritty, gumption-filled friend and her team as they do what needs to be done amid all this devastation – and there is SO MUCH! Overwhelmed doesn’t begin to describe what so many will feel for weeks to come.

Some heroes wear capes, but I know one who wears boots and a hard hat. Forgive me, Cathie, for calling you a hero, but I call it as I see it. Her team will be here in Florida for a while. Say a prayer for those affected by Helene and those who are bringing them relief.

Cathie is on her way to her next assignment. God speed, my friend.

Humble heroes are in our midst. One picked me up at the airport on Saturday in the wee hours of the morning.

Janet Hart Leonard can be contacted at janethartleonard@gmail.com or followed on Facebook or Instagram (@janethartleonard). Visit janethartleonard.com.