Contributed photo Combat veteran Randy and Jennifer Emmett, along with their 8-year-old son, are among the Cape Coral residents who have had their lives upended by Hurricane Ian. They are sharing their story so others in similar situations can find help — and hope.

Hurricane Ian has brought hard times for multitudes across Southwest Florida, and one family in Cape Coral has felt the impact tenfold.

Randy and Jennifer Emmett, both 43, along with their 8-year-old son, were evicted from the home they were renting in March following financial hardship after the storm and have had both of their vehicles repossessed.

Randy, a combat veteran who served multiple tours in Afghanistan, suffered a severely broken hand while cleaning up after Ian, which kept him out of work for months. Jennifer, who was employed but lost her job due to lack of transportation, said her income just wasn’t enough to cover their living expenses.

“I don’t know if people out there realize how the storm destroyed some people’s lives. They ended up evicting us because we couldn’t pay the rent,” Jennifer said. “We knew it was coming and we packed everything up into storage and we were gone.”

The Emmett’s son is an elementary schooler at Heritage Charter Academy of Cape Coral. The principal, Shelly Homan, has been an immeasurable source of comfort and light for the family, as the week they were evicted, Homan let the family stay at her condo because she was out of town on vacation.

“The Emmett family started struggling soon after the hurricane,” Homan said. “They, along with several other families were ‘adopted’ by our school for a holiday outreach program, and we provided Christmas for their third grader. He has actually had a rough year with behavior during his second-grade year, and this year he has made amazing strides and is doing wonderful with a new, structured teacher.”

Homan has also let the family store some of their items at the school until they find a more permanent living situation, and picked up the Emmetts’ son Thursday morning so he could get to school.

She also found foster homes for their dogs within the school, and hopes to reunite the family with their pets when they get back on their feet.

“She’s fantastic,” Jennifer said. “She even took all of our stuff with her to store in the school until we know where we’re going (Thursday night).”

Homan added: “Over the past few months, I have connected the family with resources in the community through the school that help them with electric bills, rent at one point, and of course our school pantry is always open to our families.”

After leaving Homan’s condo, Jennifer and Randy were assisted by a couple they knew from their local bowling league. Luckily enough, they had a spare room for the Emmetts to stay in at their house. The three were living there until this past Monday morning, as restoration work being performed on the home from Hurricane Ian damage required the room to be unoccupied.

The hand that Randy injured (now with a metal plate inserted) was his bowling hand, but amazingly enough, he’s taught himself how to bowl with the other.

“That’s just how resilient and amazing my husband really is,” Jennifer said.

When it comes to family members in the state, Jennifer said she and Randy have just each other to rely on.

“We have friends, but you know, not everybody can take a family of three in,” Jennifer said.

With nowhere to go, Jennifer said she reached out for advice/resources on what to do on Cape Coral Facebook groups, or maybe someone had a room for rent. She said she was met with a lot of nasty remarks.

“I got a lot of hate,” she said, adding people were calling her a scammer. “I haven’t asked anybody for anything but advice.

“There are resources out there, but if you don’t know what to do or where to go, you’re not going to find them.”

Among the unconstructive comments, though, Jennifer said a handful of women reached out to her via messenger in hopes to help the family. One of the women that reached out said she used to work for an organization that helped homeless veterans find homes.

“I didn’t know these women at all. She’s the one who started me on this path,” Jennifer said. “She’s the one who told me that I needed to find a referring agency –someone like Human and Veteran Services, or Community Cooperative — to refer me to St. Vincent De Paul, who would help us. If it wasn’t for her, I would have had no idea what to do.”

Jennifer said she tried to call Community Cooperative, but got stuck with the voicemail, not knowing she could just walk in for help. She went through Human and Veteran Services, submitted a referral, and said, as of Thursday, had not turned it around.

“I can’t get a solid answer as to what’s taking so long,” Jennifer said.

This past Monday, when the Emmetts had to be out of the home they were staying in, Jennifer contacted the Access Project, which is funded by the Florida Department of Education. They were able to put the family up in a local hotel for three nights, but that was only a temporary solution.

Jennifer, on Tuesday, feeling the pressure, walked into Community Cooperative to find more answers. Community Outreach Coordinator Jeremy Harris met with Jennifer, and she said he’s been an amazing help.

“He has assured me that we will not be on the street (Thursday) night,” Jennifer said.

As of Thursday afternoon, Jennifer had yet to receive a call from Human and Veteran Services, and contacted Harris to figure out the status.

“I told him where we were staying, and he told us to relax and said our immediate needs would be met,” Jennifer said.

To make matters more dire, on Wednesday morning when Randy was getting ready to go to work, they discovered their only car had been repossessed (their second repossessed vehicle). Homan then made a Facebook post to help the overwhelmed Emmetts list their filled-with-tools/equipment trailer for sale or trade for a car.

Oh Thursday night, the trailer was purchased above the asking price of $8,000 by a local couple who are opening a landscaping business.

Homan also called the Lee County School District, which provided coverage for three more nights at the hotel they are staying at via Access Project funds.

They will go car shopping Friday to hopefully take home a vehicle. Homan said the couple that purchased the trailer and its contents drove the Emmetts to the bank and to their hotel.

“So many good people in Cape Coral,” Homan said.

Jennifer said it’s been tough for her husband, as it is for many veterans, to reach out for help.

“But, we’re to the point where we don’t have a choice,” Jennifer said.

Information given to the family suggests once St. Vincent De Paul receives their referral, they will put them up somewhere and assist in finding permanent housing.

“They will also help with the move-in costs,” Jennifer said. “I think once we get that, things will be looking up.”

Another positive is that Jennifer is starting a new, better-paying job next week.

“We both have good jobs making decent money, we just depleted all of our savings and our credit isn’t great,” Jennifer said. “We can’t get a car or house on our own because of our credit. It’s hard to get approved. And if we do, it’s a ridiculous amount of money to move in.”

Fortunately for Randy, his employer is allowing him to use his work truck to get to and from the job. The down side is it is not to be used for any other purpose.

“My son is supposed to have a baseball game tonight, and unless we get this vehicle, I don’t know if he’s going to make it,” Jennifer said, getting emotional. “We’re trying to keep things as normal as possible for him. It’s hard. He’s stressed.”

Jennifer said she hopes her family’s story will make it so other families that may be facing similar circumstances know what’s out there. She said calling 211 and visiting organizations such as Community Cooperative are invaluable resources.

“It’s a lot of leg work, but don’t give up,’ Jennifer said. “My best advice is don’t give up, keep calling.”

Despite the tumultuous times, Jennifer is keeping a positive outlook.

“It’s been rough, but I have faith it’s all going to work out,” she said.

A GoFundMe has been set up to assist with finding a more permanent home. It may be found at gofund.me/22fb2822.

–Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj