Tornado victims and their supporters turned out for Sunday service at a church that was demolished in the killer storms that waylaid central Florida, trying to stay optimistic about the long recovery ahead.
The cleanup that began not long after Friday’s destruction took a brief pause as the faithful and others gathered under bright sun and clear skies at what was the Lady Lake Church of God. Its splintered remains have become a rallying point in this rural area hit hard by the three tornadoes that killed 20 people and destroyed hundreds of homes.
A gospel choir sang and clapped on a makeshift stage where the church’s broken cross was propped up next to an American flag.
“It’s sad, because you know, you think, ‘Next Sunday, I’m going to go to church, but it’s not there any more.’ But the building can be replaced. We still have the family of people,” said Joy Newton, 53, whose home in The Villages retirement community nearby had no damage.
Gov. Charlie Crist, handling his first natural disaster since taking office last month, attended Sunday’s service, having canceled plans to attend the Super Bowl.
The recovery began in earnest Saturday, when Lake County Sheriff Gary Borders said he did not expect to find any more victims, and President Bush designated four counties disaster areas eligible for millions of dollars in aid.
National Guard troops, neighbors and residents cleaned up in the rain, pulling blue tarps over houses that still had walls in this area about 50 miles north of Orlando. Showers soaked roofless homes and piles of twisted aluminum siding, belongings, tree limbs and lumber.
