We are blessed

12/12/2025

It's been a while since there's been an update on this page of the website. In late 2024, Anna Maria Island was devastated with not one, but two hurricanes within just a two week time span. We, the owners, live in Michigan but took immediate trips to the island after both the first and the second storms. The devastation was heartbreaking. Residents lost their homes, employees lost their ability to earn a living and provide for their families, small family businesses lost their lifes work. We stood on the island and cried.

Fast forward one year. What we have witnessed in that time has solidified everything we know about this place, and why we chose to become a part of it. No one hung their head and gave up. They went to work - determined to rebuild not only their lives, but their island too. And they succeeded. And then some. If you have been here before, you can explore and find evidence of the disaster - but only because you saw the "before". The island is, for all intents and purposes, as beautiful and vibrant as ever. Maybe in some ways even more so. The palms trees sway in the gentle Gulf winds, kids laugh and play on the beaches, dolphins and manatees swim in the shallow waters, and the whole experience still just recharges the soul.

For our part, we had to do a lot of rebuilding too. The buildings had to be gutted and rebuilt. The landscape suffered from being under two feet of saltwater. The pool and pool equipment has to be redone. But we are blessed. Our good friends at Island Vacation Properties steered us toward our now good friend and builder Todd at Remco Builders. Together, we tore it down and put it all back together. And out of trial comes blessing. We owe thanks to many people for the help, including all of you, our guests, for your patience last year and your decisions to continue staying at MI Happy Place!