When was the last time you experienced a heart-stirring sight?

Last week I was moved to tears by a glorious sight as I watched the long line of power company trucks rolling into our hurricane-ravished community. There were dozens and dozens of trucks with license plates from many states.

People stood on sidewalks cheering robustly and I wasn’t the only one with tears in my eyes.

Who could cry at a parade of power company trucks?

People who haven’t had electricity for more than a week, that’s who. From the time Hurricane Ian roared through our part of southwestern Florida, we could function only until darkness set in.

I found myself going to bed at 7:30 because what else could I do in a house where ceilings continued to fall on my head.

In the early stages of the hurricane I wore a biking helmet to protect my head from the heavy blanket of plaster, sharp strips of aluminum and wet pieces of concrete and tile that continued to fall.

It was hard enough to navigate during the day. In the dark of night it was foolish.

We worked as long and as fast as we could to cart away pieces of all that mess because we were warned mold would set in within three days, making a bad situation worse.

When I saw the devastation that was once my beloved home, I just wanted to lie down and close my eyes to the rubble and not get up.

But we had to get that wet debris out of there so we worked all day while we still have daylight.

We all longed for a cold drink of water but no electricity meant ice was a luxury from the past.

We had no idea how long we would be without electricity. Then the sight of all those trucks told us the calvary was on the way.

No wonder we cried tears of joy.

We knew from the long line of service trucks that our own Florida Power & Light workers would be augmented by hundreds of other workers from out of town.

Those men in boots became our heroes. Many of the out-of-town workers slept in makeshift tents or in the Walmart parking lot.

Many worked long shifts, from 7 in the morning till 10 at night.

Our grateful community residents brought them dinner cooked on outdoor grills.

I’ve never had such affection and admiration for men in boots.

I say men but I did see one service truck pull up with two women who joined the workforce. And yes, they did wear boots.

Even with such wide destruction, those workers managed to restore electricity in record time.

It wasn’t just power and light workers that came to our aid.

Men and women from distant states came to help.

Some brought much needed water and cleaning supplies. Some came to labor at whatever needed done.

According to our local newspaper 20,000 people came to help. I’m not sure of their statistics but I am sure of this: Every little bit of help was greatly appreciated. It made us feel others cared.

I discovered three kinds of workers were in that statistic.

Some came to earn extra money.

Some came to help a charity help us.

And sadly, some came to rip off the homeowners that were already victims of Ian.

Unfortunately, I was one of the victims and had to expend energy I didn’t have to resolve it.

As we all were trying desperately to find someone to put a tarp on our damaged roofs, the scammers arrived.

One came to my door offering to put up a tarp for $1,000. The next one said he would do it for $2,000.

Then a guy showed up and said he was sent by my insurance company to put up a tarp. He knew the name of my insurance company and showed me a list of 80 names he received from the company.

While the insurance company was paying, he said I had to sign a form saying the money would go to him. I didn’t learn until a few days later that was part of the scam. He never put up the tarp.

It was finally put on at no charge by an incredible group of Samaritan’s Purse volunteers. Sixteen men and women came to do the tarp, clean up fallen trees and bless me with prayers I badly needed.

One couple said they came from Tampa and volunteered all week because the hurricane was first expected to land in Tampa. When it didn’t, they showed their gratitude by helping others.

I met so many wonderful people working with that charity.

Other church groups and many volunteers from around the country are also here to help.

I was brought low by the wrath of the hurricane. But my spirits are lifted by seeing so many good people put aside their own lives to help us.

Some laborers are working two jobs every day to try to get ahead. Yet, there is an acute shortage of workers.

I’ve often wondered why we as a society don’t put more value on hardworking people. They are what makes America strong.

This hurricane proved how much we need men in boots and the tradesmen that keep us going.

Contact Pattie Mihalik at newsgirl@comcast.net.