Issues → September/October 2011 → Features →

Inside Yankee: The Gift of Community

by Mel Allen

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This space is where I usually tell you about the stories bound together within these covers. But there's the matter of Irene to talk about now.

What you hold here left the Yankee offices on its way to the printer less than two weeks after Tropical Storm Irene spilled its fury into the waterways of New England during the last weekend of August. As I type this, we're hearing daily stories of neighbor helping neighbor, especially in Vermont, which suffered the most. Here in southern New Hampshire, the storm lost its power sooner than expected, and all seemed fine; we went to bed that Sunday night thankful that we'd made it through. In the morning, however, we learned that our neighbors to the west in Brattleboro, Vermont, and beyond to the north, were just beginning their fight against ferocious rivers and brooks that were tearing through towns and villages, at times cutting entire communities off from their familiar, safe world.

Dave Goodman witnessed Irene from his home in Waterbury, Vermont, and his report, "The Flood", came to us within days of the storm's punishing blow. It will take months for many of these towns to find firm footing, but the story of New Englanders rallying to help fellow New Englanders will be told over and over for years. Who can measure the depth of gratitude people throughout the region will feel this holiday season as they gather, perhaps in the shadow of downed bridges or homes, knowing that the rebuilding will not stop until everyone is back on their feet?

This resilience is not surprising. Lately we've been reading through years of Yankee's best true stories of people overcoming circumstances so daunting it takes your breath away. We call our collection Terrifying True Tales of Action and Survival. If you want to stay up past your bedtime, the e-book is available for the Kindle (at Amazon.com) or the Nook (at BarnesandNoble.com), as well as the iPad and iPhone (through the iBooks application). We also have a spanking-new cookbook out: Best New England Recipes: Homemade Favorites for Every Season. With more than 150 recipes compiled by our lifestyle editor, Amy Traverso, it's the best stocking stuffer I know. You'll see it on newsstands and in the Yankee gift shop at YankeeMagazine.com/store.

All of us here at Yankee wish you the best this holiday season, and hope that the blessing of good neighbors will endure long past the power of any storm.