Hopedale man determined to celebrate Christmas in home damaged by storm
HOPEDALE - On a week usually spent shopping, wrapping, and baking, Monday's storm put a wrench a lot of those plans. "It's been a disaster," said Robert Bartolomeo under the collapsing ceiling in his Hopedale home Thursday.
During the height of the storm, a huge tree in his front yard snapped. Part of it flew through the roof, landing right over the Christmas tree in the living room, allowing rain to pour through a hole in the ceiling. His wife worried about the Christmas presents. "It's going to be ruined," said his wife, watching the rain leak through. "It's all wet."
Four days later, a pump was still removing water from the basement, and the presents were all dried out on a table. "That's the first thing we grabbed was the Christmas presents," said Bartolomeo.
After emergency crews said it was not safe to be in the home, the family left to stay in a hotel. "All my neighbors have stopped by and said come on over for Christmas if you want, but I'm having it here. That's my thing," said Bartolomeo.
On Thursday they returned home, determined to celebrate Christmas in the log cabin Bartolomeo built himself nearly 40 years ago. "It means everything to me. It really does," he said, getting teary-eyed. "I can't describe it, really, means a lot."
They were not the only ones still dealing with the aftermath of the storm. In Norton, residents on Heather Hills Way did not get power back until Thursday. "I think it puts a damper on the holiday definitely," said resident Tom Knox. He was frustrated when the lack of information from utilities. "They did not have record that we were out of power here, which is shocking," he said.
Back in Hopedale, Bartolomeo knew the impact of the storm could have been a lot worse. He has a new appreciation for spending the holidays right at home. "I'd rather have it here than in a hospital room or funeral home," he said.