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By Bonnie Bartel Latino

Columnist

Former Escambia County (Ala.) Probate Judge Emilie Wood Mims and her husband, Glenn Edwin Biggs, live on Moonshine Mountain, near Burnville, one of the many mountain communities of North Carolina, which was devastated by last week’s Hurricane Helene.

Paired with “Biblical” devastation from floods and high winds, Helene is said to have caused billions of dollars worth of damage and the death toll continues to climb, according to officials.

Just after noon Monday and several days after the hurricane hit Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas, I heard from Emilie’s sister, Celine Meador, who is a close friend and lives in North Carolina, but not near the mountains.

Her text read: “Emilie is all right. Message from (her son) Jason. Praise God!”

Praise God, in deed! What a special Thanksgiving this will be for their families and for so many who love Emilie and Ed. One assumes that their ginormous dog, Squirrel, is also OK.