After weathering four hurricanes in Florida last year, list broker Marti Berkowitz found herself taking her first vacation in eight years in Chiang Ma, Thailand last month when tsunami waves began battering coastlines, following the 9.0 undersea Indonesian earthquake.
Berkowitz, president of Luna III Direct Inc. of Sarasota, FL has been overwhelmed in the wake of numerous telephone calls and e-mails she received following the Dec. 26 Asian tsunami disaster. She arrived home from Thailand safely on Jan. 4.
Inquiries about Berkowitz’ whereabouts and her well-being soon began pouring in, but she was practically incommunicado and rarely able to access her e-mail during most her stay in Thailand.
“I came home a total wreck. And I learned from several clients that several list managers had called them to find out if I had been in contact and that I was okay,” she said.
That so many people inquired about her left Berkowitz feeling “warm and fuzzy, she said. “My gratitude to everyone asking about me knows no bounds.”
As for the disaster, Berkowitz was far from harm’s way in the mountains about 400 miles north of Bangkok, Thailand. She barely felt the temblor, but she experienced shock from meeting disaster victims traveling inland. “I’ll never forget the look on the face of a woman who told me that she was standing on a balcony when she saw the waves hit and sweep several children out to sea.”
Berkowitz said she was unable to enjoy the rest of the stay in Thailand because the omnipresent news of the catastrophe and mourning weighed so heavily on everyone’s minds. But she does look forward to visiting Thailand again. “The people in Thailand are the kindest and warmest people that I have ever met.”
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