Jerry’s Foods marked another milestone for Sanibel Island’s recovery from the devastation of Hurricane Ian.
The Sept. 28 storm brought 155 mph winds and at least a dozen feet of storm surge to the island. Jerry’s, built in 1983 and elevated more than 15 feet above ground level, did not flood, but suffered some damage, including a destroyed freezer and other cosmetic damage to the outside.
Inside, despite a vacant freezer, Jerry’s became the first grocery store to reopen on the island with a soft launch Friday. The building at 1700 Periwinkle Way rejoined the power grid Monday.
On Tuesday, Sanibel Mayor Holly Smith, Sanibel-Captiva Chamber of Commerce President John Lai and a team of employees from the Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau cut the ceremonial ribbon 27 days after Hurricane Ian hit.
By Friday, the inside cafeteria should be serving hot meals to residents, reconstruction crews and first responders.
“We must have been some of the first people to get back on the island,” Jerry’s General Manager Rick Winningham said of the initial days following the storm. “It was unbelievable. It was almost like a bomb went off.”
Winningham said his heart sunk upon first seeing the building. There were downed trees everywhere and debris tossed by the winds, too.
“I literally thought it would be nine months to a year before we’d have the opportunity to open up for business again,” Winningham said.
Instead, it took less than four weeks.
“It’s huge,” Lai said of the morale boost Jerry’s would provide to residents of Sanibel. “It can’t be understated. This is our first step in restoration. It’s getting the essentials out to our residents and our businesses in the form of groceries.
“For people who need a sense of normalcy and to be rejuvenated and to be motivated, this is a great place to come back and remember why we’re here. The natural beauty of the island still surrounds us. And Jerry’s reopening is a big step in that direction.”
Smith said each passing day has revealed small pieces of progress, and that those have been adding up to big moments like this one.
“But today was really super significant, as this is one of our main businesses on our island,” Smith said. “Having a grocery store, being able to open to service our residents, service our first responders, is really showing a new day of life on this island. It’s also showing what’s going to continue to happen on this island.
“When I came back on island on Sunday and heard the store was open, it just gave me such an inspirational moment, because these are the moments we are all going to look forward to every day, as things progress. We need our businesses, and we need to support our businesses in every way we can, because they’re going to be the pioneers as we rebuild this city.”
Winningham said the store would be a work in progress. Items that were popular a year ago probably wouldn’t be now. And there are other items the store likely needs to be stocking that it didn’t beforehand.
“We’ll figure it out,” he said.
