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In the path, and in the mood

Last year's storm season brought wind, rain, havoc, candlelight - and romance. Some folks not only survived, they multiplied.

By LANE DeGREGORY
Published June 23, 2005

JESSICA and DAVID SHELLARD, TAMPA

	[Times photos: Carrie Pratt
	Jessica Shellard of Tampa with her baby, Emma Marie, born May 6.

Baby: Emma Marie, born May 6

Hurricane they survived: Charley

Their story: "The storm was coming right at us. We taped our windows, hunkered down at the house. And there we were, waiting, waiting, waiting for something to happen," says Jessica, 33.

Something did.

The women's shelter where she's an accountant got boarded up on Thursday. Her husband, who works at Bay Linens, was sent home. They set out candles, flashlights, a propane stove and radios.

All day Friday, they waited and worried. But on Saturday, the storm turned away, leaving them unscathed. "For three days, we had the whole house to ourselves," Jessica says. "We just kept ourselves busy, you know?"

SUSAN and GAVIN BENSON, ST. PETERSBURG

Sue Benson at home in St. Petersburg before the arrival of son Wells Benson on May 18.

Baby: Wells Benson, born May 18

Hurricane they survived: Frances

Their story: They work crazy hours. She's an English professor at St. Petersburg College. He owns the Tavern at USF-St. Petersburg. They're almost never home at the same time. So though they had been talking about having a baby, they hadn't had many chances to try.

Then came Frances. "We made hurricane shutters and hung them, then spent the rest of those two days cooking dinner, drinking wine, watching old movies," says Susan, 36. "It was the first time we had spent two whole days together in a long, long time."

She found out she was pregnant just before the fourth storm blew through Florida.

	Paola Botero and John Megats of Delray Beach with their baby, Nahia, born May 19.

Baby: Nahia Megats, born May 19

Hurricane they survived: Frances

Their story: During the first hurricane, they evacuated to her parents' house. "So you know nothing was going to happen there," she says, laughing. Since they live only blocks from the ocean, they were supposed to leave during Frances, too. This time, John begged her to stay.

"We're both middle school teachers, so we were out of work for a while," says Paola, 27. "We had been without electricity for almost three weeks." It was hot. It was dark. They lit candles. "It was, well, romantic."

When Nahia was born, the first thing Paola noticed was her hair. The baby has thick, dark hair. "And in the middle of her forehead, she has this cowlick," Paola says. "It looks just like a little hurricane."

Robin Kelley of DeLand talks with husband Wayne Schneider as he changes a light bulb in their kitchen. Their home sustained a lot of damage from Hurricane Frances, but on the bright side, they also conceived their daughter, Zoe Katharine, born June 9.

Baby: Zoe Katharine Schneider, born June 9

Hurricane they survived: Frances

Their story: Their new family room was dark. They had just finished remodeling and wanted to enjoy the results, but the second storm was rolling across the radar straight at them. So they boarded up the windows, pulled their dog and four cats into the redone room and sat there in the dark, listening to the wind whip around.

A tree tore through their roof. Sheets of rain streamed through, soaking their new carpet. Their house had $8,000 worth of damage, and they lost power for seven days.

"It was very hot that whole week, and there wasn't a lot to do. It's amazing how much time we waste watching TV," says Robin, a 33-year-old computer programmer. "Take away our TV, and we found out that really increases our intimacy!"

Tirusew Asefa and wife Idania Mirabal of Clearwater with baby, Yared, born June 13.

	Tirusew Asefa adjusts son Yared’s cap at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater.

Baby: Yared Asefa-Huerta, born June 13

Hurricane they survived: Ivan

Their story: He's from Ethiopia. She's from Cuba. They met in Belgium and moved to Florida last July when he got hired as a hydrologist with Tampa Bay Water. Two weeks later, Hurricane Charley came spiraling toward them. "We went to the beach to see it," says Tirusew, 35. "I wanted to act like those TV reporters, standing out in the wind and rain."

When Frances blew through Sept. 4, they lost power. But as Ivan skirted the shore 10 days later, they didn't even get much rain. Tirusew, however, was home from work for a couple of days.

"We had been working on having a baby for two years. We tried and we tried, even taking her temperature," he says. "It must have been something special about that storm. It gave us our boy. He's a very good boy.'

- Lane DeGregory can be reached at 727 893-8825 or degregory@sptimes.com

[Last modified June 22, 2005, 15:35:42]