A Tulsa woman who flies to Florida every month to help retirees with their estate plans doesn’t know when she’ll be able to return home because of back-to-back hurricanes.
Stacey Pearson said she was worried about her friends and colleagues there.
Pearson flew to Florida on Tuesday and was scheduled to speak at a seminar this week.
She doesn’t know when she’ll be able to see her customers and co-workers again, but she’s doing what she can in Tulsa.
“Our audience is typically retirees. They’re not really tech-savvy. They play along as best they can, but that’s the problem,” Pearson said.
Pearson is also concerned about her team, which includes 85-year-old lawyer Ron Harvey.
Harvey has evacuated his home along Tampa Bay and stored all his important belongings at his law office up north.
“What we’re worried about is whether we’ll have a home when we get home,” Harvey said. “We’ve lived in this house for 38 years. This is the first time we’ve owned it. It’s home.”
Harvey doesn’t know what’s next for his job or family.
“Helen was a turning point for us. We’ve been through many hurricanes, but this one is different,” Harvey said.
Harvey and Pearson are still doing everything they can to maintain contact with their customers.
“Please contact them through various channels to see if there is anything we need to help them with and we will respond,” Pearson said.
Pearson and her team expect to see an influx of customers needing help after the storm.
“When I talk to a lot of older clients, they’re mentally overtaxed. It’s too much for them and I worry about their health issues,” Pearson said. he said.
Harvey lives in Oklahoma and still has family here.
Both Mr Harvey and Mr Pearson said these tragedies are yet another reminder of the importance of solving our problems before it’s too late.
