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American Legion Post 273 reopens after storms
FOX 13's Kailey Tracy describes the scene at the grand reopening of Madeira Beaches American Legion Post 273, which finally opened after suffering major storm damage from Hurricane Helene.
MADIERA BEACH, Fla. - Nearly five months after Hurricane Helene forced American Legion Post 273 in Madeira Beach to close its doors, it reopened Thursday.
Members packed the post for the ceremony.
Packed house at the reopening of American Legion Post 273 in Madeira Beach.
"One hundred and twenty days to the day since Helene hit exactly, I can say those two magical and glorious words, welcome home," Post 273 Commander Anthony Torregrossa told a crowd at the reopening ceremony.
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The backstory:
Torregrossa said that’s exactly what the Madeira Beach American Legion is for thousands of its members: home.
It made him emotional to welcome them back through the doors after Hurricanes Helene and Milton destroyed most of the place.
Post 273 Commander Anthony Torregrossa after cutting the grand opening ribbon.
"When you hope for this day for this long, I mentioned that this is like a fantasy come true," Torregrossa said.
Dig deeper:
During Helene, the post, which had been open since the 1950s, was flooded by three and a half feet of water.
"It was a disaster," Torregrossa said. "We basically had to start from scratch, demo everything."
The water destroyed every piece of equipment, washed out their office, kitchen, and more.
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"We consider ourselves an American Legion family," Torregrossa said. "Our employees stepped in from day one and worked four and a half months to rebuild this post."
Local perspective:
Lots of members volunteered to help, like Geo Vandenburgh, the Road Captain for the post.
"This is more than just a post," Vandenburgh said. "This is family. Everybody knows everybody. It's a place for veterans to come and feel like they're part of a family."
"Our second home has opened the doors again. It has been a long time coming," Vandenburgh said.
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Their second home also functions as a fundraising spot for the services they offer veterans, like their Bridge the Gap financial assistance program.
"The American Legion’s mission is to assist veterans, their families, active military, and the community. We've been on hold for four and a half months, and now we can finally get back and do the job that we really want to do, and that's reach out and help every one of those groups that we can," Torregrossa said.
Why you should care:
Torregrossa said many of the members are still displaced, and some are living in the hotel next door.
He says they relied on donations and their emergency fund to rebuild and were able to continue to pay their employees while they were closed.
The Source: FOX 13's Kailey Tracy collected the information in this story.
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