By David Fleet
Editor
The water stopped rising about 400 feet from their home.
James Vultaggio, a 1997 Brandon High School graduate, along with wife Shannon, children Celeste, 9, and Dominic, 7, are residents of Spring, Texas a community of about 55,000 located 50 miles north of Houston. The family home is about 230 miles north east of Corpus Christi, Texas where Hurricane Harvey made landfall on Aug. 25, 2017 according to the National Weather Service.
“We are at a peak in our neighborhood,” said Shannon. “It’s like we are on an island—our power was off for a five days— but our home was safe only a few small leaks. However, you could not leave our street there was so much flooding—it’s like we are on a boat in our house. We are very lucky. Just 200 yards from our house the Texas National Guard was launching boats right in the middle of the highway—a major interstate.”
Others were not so lucky. The National Weather Service reported some areas around Houston received more than 50 inches of rain.

In the days after Harvey made land, James and Shannon along with parents of local Boy Scout Troop 1173 reached out to others in the neighborhood.
“For about a week and a half after Harvey the community reached out to those in need,” said James. “As the water started going down we went door-to-door. Some of the homes at one point were under eight feet of water.”
For their efforts on Feb. 12, Shannon and James Vultaggio were awarded the Ford Freedom Unsung “Heroes of Harvey” Award, celebrating individuals who have made significant contributions in their community during the hurricane relief efforts. Residents of the Greater Houston Area were invited to nominate unsung heroes who demonstrated heroic deeds during the relief efforts. The distinction was also included a Congressional Recognition from the 18th District of Texas. A total of 26 individuals and groups were recognized with the Heroes of Harvey Award.
Shelia Jackson Lee, is the U.S. Representative for Texas’s 18th congressional district, serving since 1995 acknowledged the Vultaggio’s contributions for helping Houstonions after Hurricane Harvey.
“Your deadication truley deserves the respect, admiration, and commendation of the United States Congress,” she wrote.
“We did nothing thousands of other people did during Harvey,” said James. “We were just nominated for the award and received the recognition.”
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner also recognized the contribution.
“It’s not like I was pulling people out of a burning home,” he said. “Everyone pitched in to help in a bad time. There were people from other states and cities. We had an abundance of supplies such as shovels, cleaners and food. It would be the end of the day and someone would show up with pizza or sandwiches.”
About six months after Harvey rebuilding the community is still ongoing, he said.
“It’s not like a fire where you can see burned out buildings,” he said. “Rather, the homes are, for the most part, still standing. Many homes have been gutted and are in various states of repair. Some families are still displaced. Some are living in campers in the driveway. Others live in motels or apartments until their home is rebuilt. Others sold their home as is and moved on.”
The Vultaggio children’s school was damaged in the storm.
The first day of school was Aug. 21 for Celeste a fourth grade student and Dominic a second grader. The children attended Lemm Elementary School in the Klein School District where Shannon was a registered nurse. The children could walk to their school.
They closed Lemm on Aug. 25 to prepare for the storm. The school building was damaged and according to news sources will cost the district about $12-$15 million in repairs. The students, teachers, and staff had to be placed in a wing of a high school about 20 miles away
Hurricane Harvey was the second storm for the Vultaggio’s. On Sept. 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike roared on shore near Galveston, Texas about 80 miles south of Spring. During Ike, the family hunkered down inside a closet when the eye passed over their house. They lost power for about three weeks that time but had only minor damage to their home.
“No area is really a safe zone,” he said. “We are staying here in Texas. Seeing the community coming together is hard to find anywhere else.”
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