Etta Jo's Doll - Chapter 1 - Meet Etta Jo

Etta Jo lives on a Caribbean island that was devastated a few months ago when the high winds and torrential rains caused by Hurricane Maria swept across the landscape.  Etta Jo’s home, where she lived with her mother, and the school, where she attended second grade, were destroyed.  

A family in Laconia, who annually vacationed on the island and knew her mother, offered to provide a home for Etta Jo for a few months while the community is being rebuilt.

Etta Jo is 8 years old and has never traveled off the island or experienced snow or the New England traditions of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Over the next eight weeks the Laconia Daily Sun will feature, through a series of stories, the adventures of Etta Jo that will allow children to understand how a child views their world and culture through a different lens.

These stories, fictionalized and based on an imagined situation, can be read to children ages 5  to 9 years old  or read by children.  

Children can write letters to Etta Jo c/o The Laconia Daily Sun, 1127 Union Ave. #1, Laconia, NH 03246 and their letters will be answered.

By ELIZABETH HOWARD

Etta Jo woke up, opened her eyes, and looked around the crowded room. She was living in a shelter with her mother and many other families because their homes had been destroyed in a storm that had swept across the small island where they lived. Etta Jo missed her bed, favorite books, and she especially missed her doll named Charlotte. Now she only had a few clothes that her mother had found in a box of donations that had been sent to the island.

As she sat up, her mother came to her bed and wrapped her in a warm hug.

“You are going to have an adventure today, Etta Joe,” she said. “You are flying to the United States in an airplane and will stay there for a few months to live and attend school. We will have a new house, and you can go back to school with your friends when you return. Now, let’s get you dressed.”

Etta Jo could feel the tears in her eyes. She didn’t want to leave.

Her mother handed her blue pants and an orange top. Then her mother found a satchel and filled it with Etta Jo’s few clothes.

“No tears, Etta Jo.”

The roads were still rough and Etta Jo’s mother arranged for someone to drive her to the airport. Because there was little food in the shelter where they were staying, she would have breakfast there.

“Etta Jo, you are a brave, strong little girl. You are going to have experiences that you will always remember.” Etta Jo reached out, held her mother next to her.

Then the car arrived and Joe, the driver, came in, took Etta Jo’s hand, and picked up her small satchel.

“Mama, I’ll wait with Etta Jo until the plane comes and she is boarding.”

“Thank you, Joe, “said Etta Jo’s mother.

Etta Jo took a deep breath, grabbed Joe’s hand and walked to the car. She waved as they pulled away until she could no longer see her mother standing in the door.

Etta Jo's doll