‘They Call Me The Lonely Man On The Island’

Homer Sylvester rode out Hurricane Harvey in his Beaumont home.

By Michael MarksMarch 1, 2018 11:08 am,

Homer Sylvester lives in Beaumont, Texas next to the Neches River. He’s made his home here, in the woods, since his mother bought a house after his father was killed in 1956.

“My mother bought this saying we will always have a place to come,” Sylvester says.

When Hurricane Harvey struck, Sylvester remained calm, staying in his house in the woods, as friends and family members called to check on him. Even with floodwaters passing his gate, Sylvester refused to leave.

“I’m not going nowhere. Where am I gonna go? You can’t run, you can’t hide,” Sylvester says. “They call me the lonely man on the island.”

While the disaster was happening outside, Sylvester says he was sleeping like a baby with his TV on. Many homes were lost, but most who weathered the storm still have is their lives.

“Texas people can grow. I don’t know about nobody else. It fills me up to say it,” Sylvester says. “I got through.”

Written by Angela Bonilla.