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Hart: Will you state your name for the record please? Ponton: My name is Ronald V. Ponton, Sr. Hart: Ronald V. Ponton, Sr. And your occupation? Ponton: I work in counter sales for Jerry's Marine. Hart: And you are also a minister in the Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, is that true? Ponton: That's true. Hart: Okay, thank you. When did you come to realize Hurricane Andrew might hit Miami? Ponton: Well, I realized probably Thursday night because there was no change in the direction of the storm, it was coming straight West toward us. That looked like we were going to get the Hurricane. So I realized then and started to take it more seriously. Hart: Okay. Then what sort of preparations were necessary? Ponton: At that particular time, we started buying whatever things we needed: canned goods, extra water, ice, and so on. And of course we started getting the house in order, getting things outside put inside, or put into the shed, sealing things up, making sure there was no flying debris, and so on. Then getting the house secured, the awnings and so on. Hart: So then you did make advanced preparations? Ponton: Yes. Hart:What concerns of others were also your responsibility, meaning friends, family, or elderly? Ponton: The immediate concerns were friends. We made some calls concerning some older friends, but they were being taken care of by some other friends. But here in the neighborhood, on either side of us were families with no husbands or fathers , so we were able to help both sides of our neighbors in getting their awnings down, getting everything secure and getting them all prepared so that they could weather the storm also. Hart: I'm sure they appreciated that assistance. Where were you prior to and the during the storm? Ponton: Prior to the storm we were still working, Thursday and Friday, and Saturday we were in our preaching activity most of the day, but still doing a little bit of shopping. But it wasn't until later on that evening that we really buckled down and got some things done inside the house. We got the tub filled with water, and some of the appliances ready just in case the storm would come through. Hart: Was your area an evacuation zone? Ponton: No, it was not because we are far west inland. The evacuation zone was east of us toward the beach. In fact up to that point, Thursday and Friday night, we thought they had said the storm would come within a few blocks of our house. As it turned out the storm veered further south of us. Hart: So then, who was with you during the storm? Ponton: My wife and my two children were here during the storm. We had asked my daughter and her husband if they would like to come stay with us, but they stayed with their in-laws in a house not too far from us. Hart: What happened to you during the hurricane? Can you explain what took place? Ponton: Of course when the hurricane hit you could tell right away. The wind started picking up, and really there wasn't a whole lot of concern other than our shed outside. This house was built in 1948, so it is a solid house. I think it could withstand a storm even if the eye had come through. But the immediate concern was the shed outside and our mango tree. As it turned out the mango tree did lose a lot of branches and the shed did come off its foundation . Hart: What was of concern to you during the storm? Ponton: One thing I was thinking about was when the electricity was going to go out. Our thoughts were to how serious it would be, how severe it would be, what damage it would do to the vehicles parked outside. Those were our only concerns. Hart: Your daughter was telling me you were up during the storm, watching what was taking place outside. What were your thoughts when you saw that? Ponton: When we looked outside it was just amazing. The winds were coming through and every once in a while we saw flying debris. We saw a branch of the mango tree torn off like it was nothing, blown about 20 feet away. Looking outside my daughter's window, the whole shed was airborne. The only thing holding it down was a cable I threw across the top, at my wife's suggestion. It was interesting watching the wind blow and the branches flying. To add to that, we also saw the transformer blow up, and it looked like fire works at Disney World at that point. That is when we lost electricity. Hart: What did you do after the storm hit? Ponton: Monday morning we got up, and there were still gusts of winds of about 50 mph. We went to see the damage out back, the mango tree, the lost tiles on the roof. We walked down the street and the neighborhood was just changed dramatically. Trees were uprooted, a fichus bigger than a house, a landmark in the neighborhood was just gone. Primarily we looked around to see what the damage was and to see where we could help out our neighbors. Hart: Right. Why don't you describe your first week after the storm? Ponton: The first week was primarily cleaning up. Tuesday I was back at work again, working every day. In the evenings were our worst episodes because we had no electricity. So we barbecued every night outside. We had to get charcoal, we had to get ice. We had no electricity for 11 days. Nights were hard sleeping because it was warm outside. It was just hectic. Hart: I imagine. Did you receive help after the hurricane? Ponton: Well, what we did was we got together with some of the neighbors and their kids, and we chopped up the trees and piled up all the debris. Primarily we helped the single parents and their children. Hart: That's great! So the neighborhood came together? Ponton: Yes. Hart: Now we are going to ask you some questions about your involvement in the assistance effort. Did you provide assistance to others, and can you explain the nature of that assistance? Ponton: We had several Kingdom Halls(churches) down in Homestead that were badly damaged and that took the brunt of the storm. Set up down there was a central point where we helped over three thousand families who had homes that were damaged to get their homes straightened out. What we did was work in a centralized mobile kitchen that provided food for the workers. These were men that came from as far as New Jersey, Louisiana,and North Carolina to help in the relief work. We cooked breakfast, lunch and dinner for them. We did this for as many as 500-700 at a time. Hart: And this work was all a part of the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses? Ponton: Yes, that's correct. Hart: Okay. Did you notice any particular emotional state in the people you assisted? Ponton: I think the emotional aspect of it was listening to people talk about the disaster and the destruction that the hurricane had done. We had only seen it on T.V. and we thought what had taken place was awful. But to actually see it and see it as people talked, you could sense the distress in them and in some of the depressed ones and how they were affected by it. Yes, it was an emotional time for a lot of the ones that were helping out because they were helping out and yet their homes were damaged, but they were not worried about that at the moment because they knew they would get help as time permitted too. Hart: What was your immediate reaction to the devastation you witnessed? Ponton: We've been living in Miami since 1955 and we've been through a lot of storms. Hurricane Donna was one that was real bad back in 63' and it created some damage then. But I've never seen anything like this. The only things I've seen to compare to this are the tornados of the Midwest where homes were just flattened into lumber. I could never imagine a hurricane doing something like that, but when I saw it I couldn't believe what I was seeing, homes just flattened into wood, 3/4 inch plywood being ripped off homes like paper, and it was just devastating. It was something I thought I would never see in my lifetime. Hart: Wow. How do you think others were affected by your assistance? Ponton: It was really spiritually and emotionally faith strengthening. As we were helping people, they couldn't believe that others could come together and assist one another. As we were working in one house of Jehovah's Witnesses, we would assist neighbors who weren't of the same religion in a house nearby. This really brought the people together. Helping in the kitchen and preparing food was a relief because these people came to work and they wouldn't have to worry about food and a place of rest because all of that was provided for them. Hart: Was your family involved in this assistance as well? Ponton: My wife and my two children came along, would cook and assist. We got up at 4:00 a.m. and headed down South to Homestead and to the Perrine area and made way to the mobile kitchens and worked together as a family along with other families of Jehovah's Witnesses. We were able to accomplish quite a bit. Hart: Were there any particularly rewarding experiences you had while providing assistance? Ponton: Besides the smiling faces of those that we were helping and the gratitude of those that were there, a couple of experiences stood out in my mind. These were forwarded from different areas of the relief fund. One was concerning Levi Strauss, the jeans man. He was frustrated by the disorganization of the other groups such as the Salvation Army and the Red Cross. He wanted to donate supplies to an organization that would put it to immediate use. He read in the newspaper that the military could learn from the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses. He donated all supplies to Jehovah's Witnesses and this included a lot of juices and drinks that were available to us. Another experience in the heart of the disaster was in the city of Homestead and it involved the Mayor. A couple of inspectors stopped some Jehovah's Witnesses who were working on a roof. The brother (member of religion) related that they must not have been informed of the arrangement at city hall. The Witnesses could go on with their working because there had been inspectors, also Witnesses, to oversee the work. The mayor of Homestead Todd Demille came to the kingdom Hall site and stated ,"Without a doubt, the Witnesses are the most organized group in all of Homestead." The local witnesses there had been since trying to get the okay for some building projects. Tuesday night was designated a night to meet on that agenda. Apparently the Kingdom Hall projects were not put on that agenda. The Mayor said he would see to it that it was. The Mayor stated that his mother's roof had been badly damaged and that the roof of two officials had been too. The Mayor then commented that the Witnesses would not have to worry about getting permits because their projects for building would go through that Tuesday night. He also wanted a representative of the organization there at the meeting to thank the group for all of the assistance provided. The Witnesses in turn helped repair those roofs the Mayor spoke of. Here we see a local experience of how Jehovah's Witnesses have been effective in a community work, not only for themselves but for their neighbors too. Hart: So then they really care about people. Ponton: Yes. Hart: Is there anything else that you would like to add that we haven't asked or talked about? Ponton: Well, I think the tremendous effort of the organization even before the storm hit was notable. Tractor trailers were already on their way down before the storm, anticipating the hurricane, bringing lumber, tar paper, supplies, and relief. Jehovah's Witnesses were one of the first groups to begin relief work. This is impressive because it shows a religious organization having real unity with people and being praised for it. It has shown many of the neighbors that they are these type of people, not hypocritical, but honest, working together with different colors and creeds, and having happy end results. They bring people back into unity. They help get them back their emotional and spiritual demeanor. It was something that was overwhelming during this particular time. Hart: Well it sounds like you had some good experiences. I'd like to thank you for your time and for your expressions. They'll be put to good use. Ponton: Thank you very much. Tell your teacher to give you an "A". The audience giggles.
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