By Heather Bowser
Randy Gilde placed one final ornament upon his smaller-than-ever Christmas tree.
He moved the tree to the dirty oil-stained floor while his wife covered the lawn mower with an old white sheet.
The Gildes will spend the remainder of the Christmas season as they have since hurricane Jeanne - living in their garage.
Although three hurricanes left thousands of central Florida houses without suitable roofs, the Christmas spirit still thrives in the homes underneath the blue tarps that cover them.
'It''s amazing,' said Randy, an elder in his Presbyterian congregation. 'No matter what happens ... you just grow in your faith. The more trials you have, the stronger you get.'
Hurricanes Charley, Francis and Jeanne caused billions of dollars in damages, leaving less money for Foridians during Christmas.
Randy spent most of hurricane Jeanne huddled with his family in his master bathroom while the storm collapsed his roof and detached his 14-by-50-foot porch.
'It''s definitely scary when you hear a big ''crack'' and you come out of the bathroom and the roof is totally gone,' he said. 'I''m just grateful no one got hurt.'
Ironically, the family decided to move to Lake Placid to avoid constant hurricanes typical in Palm Beach where they lived before.
Lois and Frank Parker, neighborhood friends of the Gildes, also lost their roof to hurricane Jeanne. The storm forced them to live with their daughter for seven weeks while Frank installed a temporary roof.
'The Lord always gives you trials for a reason though you never know what the reason is,' Lois said. 'Maybe, it''s to make you grateful for the things you once had. Even now, living in this mess, it''s nice we have a roof over our heads.'
Lois nearly lost her life during the hurricane when part of the ceiling collapsed on her chair right after she moved from it.
The Parkers said they should get a permanent roof by April, if they are lucky. They will return to their daughter''s house for Christmas day.
Jack and Charlotte Munn, who live 20 miles from the Parkers, also sustained severe water damage to their house after hurricane Charley destroyed part of the roof. Charlotte said it was a 'miracle from the Lord' they were able to contact a roofer at all considering most people are still on a waiting list.
'The roofer asked me how I got a hold of his office when he didn''t even have phone service,' she said. 'I told him, ''Well, I prayed first before I dialed your number, and I got through miraculously.'''
The Munns tended their leaky roof during each hurricane by mopping up rainwater with old bath towels. Charlotte mopped over 23 gallons during hurricane Charlie alone.
'Christmas will always be Christmas, no matter what happens in our lives,' Charlotte said. 'As crummy as the three storms were, it won''t deter me from celebrating Christmas, because Christmas is my Lord''s birthday, and you always celebrate birthdays.'