IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Hurricane correspondent and recorder Ann Wolfe Combee

Ann Combee, who has become a hurricane eyewitness of sorts in Boca Grande, lives two lives. Part of each week she is the owner of a spa for dogs in Winter Haven; the other part of the week she is basking in the sun in Boca Grande. She and her husband Bruce have been living this dichotomous life for more than 20 years.

Both Ann and Bruce grew up in Florida. Ann was born in Winter Haven and can document four generations of native Floridian family. As Ann and Bruce’s family expanded, it was time to find a getaway home where they could escape, relax and have fun.  

They searched diligently for that special spot, and about 22 years ago they found it – a lovely island with a sense of neighborliness they had not seen anywhere else they’d traveled. 

“I knew I wanted someplace on the beach, where I could look left and look right and see up and down the beach,” Ann said. “We looked at a few places and we bought at the Sundown. I can’t remember how long we were there but we went from the Sundown to the Dunes of Boca. Then my husband kind of picked up fishing, and he wanted somewhere where he could have more access to a boat and water.

“After we were at the Dunes for about nine years, we moved down to Boca Bay, on Buttonwood Drive. There we had a dock, and a boat and all that. Then, after these last two hurricanes, we’d never been so glad we had sold that place. We had built a new dock just before we moved, and now the very end of it is kind of destroyed. I really feel for the people who bought it from us. After Boca Bay, we found this place in the Isles. Where we are in the Isles is just very protected. We’re on the north side of the bay, just before you get to the bridge. But we still have a beautiful view. We can see Boca Vista and we have access to our boat. We’re very protected there from the wind and everything else.”

Ann said they have had no physical damage to the house in any of the recent storms.

Their location is in Boca Grande Isles, a gated community consisting of a small cluster of islands and peninsulas attached to Gasparilla Island by the 16th Street bridge. Safety is not the only reason they appreciate the neighborhood.

“We love all the neighbors,” she said. “Our neighbors in the Isles are just incredible people. They are sweet and kind, and several are down here full-time.”

Most of them left for the storms, but there were a few who remained, Ann said. Their house was stable and secure.

“I really had no fears, except for the water rising,” she said. 

“The day after the storm, for both Milton and Helene, I walked down on the beach and the items that you find there were something. There were hundreds of Rubbermaid containers, trash containers and just anything you can imagine. I found a stuffed animal that I think was a lion … the things that people lost. I found a sign that said ‘Bokeelia’ on it as well as a wooden table that was all painted. My heart bled for the people who live on Shore Lane after Milton. After Helene, it did not seem so bad, and they did not get the water intrusion that Milton brought.

“I walked from 19th Street to 45th Street the next day and took pictures of each of the homes. The pools were just full of sand. There were homes where the windows were broken out and rocks were inside them. Then, riding on the golf cart into town after Milton, it was like riding on the beach in the golf cart because there was so much sand on the golf cart path and down the streets downtown. And then the water level downtown was just devastating. I’m so sad for the businesses downtown. They’re working very hard to get it back to normal, though.”

Combe appreciates the law enforcement and fire personnel for the work they did in protecting the island from thieves and what she called “looky-loos,” who seem to enjoy seeing other people’s tragedies and taking advantage of people’s inability to protect themselves in these situations. Lee County’s efforts at cleanup were also high on her list of the good guys after the storms. Another especially “good guy” during the time were the Combes’ neighbors across the street, with a two-story house.

“They left the island and gave us the key to their house. They told us if the water got too high, we could go over there and stay in their upstairs,” Ann recounted. She was happy she never had to use that option. With Helene, it was a worry. 

“It came over the first step at about 8:30 at night,” she said, “but by 11 or so it had dissipated and gone back down. But the water was high around us. You couldn’t see the mangroves; you couldn’t see the dock. It was just this great water that was kind of eerie. We were worried because we just have a single-story home. We are up about nine feet, but we were afraid we were going to experience some water damage.”

They were not sure whether the same would be true two weeks later when Milton approached.  

Ann talked about leaving Boca Grande during Milton, but her husband was determined to stay because he knew he would not be able to get back on the island afterward.  

“So I decided, I’m going to stay with him. My two dogs, my husband and I stayed. Both of our kids were back in Winter Haven – they are 28 and 27 – they were worried. They didn’t want us to stay, but we weren’t going to leave. And I tell you, it was just fascinating watching the storms, more so with Milton.

“I started going out every 30 minutes or so and taking videos, just to show how the winds were blowing.” She has a new respect for storm chasers, she said. “They are pretty brave people.”  

The History Center has asked for copies of many of the pictures and videos Ann took. They will become part of the island’s archives of hurricane events on Gasparilla Island. Ann is happy to contribute to the historical record of the island.

Ann said Bruce will likely choose to stay on the island any time a storm is threatening.

“Bruce stays on the island pretty much all the time,” she said. Ann, on the other hand, owns a business back in Winter Haven that takes her back to the middle of the state every week.  

“I have had this business for 38 years, and I have a hard time letting go of it,” she said. Her daughter is taking over some of the operations, “and doing a great job of it,” but Ann is there three days a week, tending to the creatures. The business is called Little Wolfe’s Pet Resort, and it offers grooming, boarding and daycare for dogs.

Wolfe was Ann’s maiden name.  

“My father had a sporting goods business in Winter Haven, when he was alive. My brother also had his own business, a tree-trimming and front-end loader business. So there was Wolfe’s Sporting Goods and Wolfe’s Tree Removal and Trimming. I’m the littlest Wolfe, so I named my business ‘Little Wolfe’s Pet Resort.’”  

She loves her animals and cannot quite separate herself from them. Besides, she enjoys having two aspects to her life.

“I just love the drive down to Boca Grande from Winter Haven,” she said. “It’s just a real easy drive down 17. It is two hours and ten minutes, door-to-door, and it’s my quiet time. It’s when I get to listen to my music. I can think and just drive. I like it.”

Ann believes she would stay on the island again through a storm. The people on the Isles got very little damage. Some homes lost roofs in Helene, but after Milton, there was very little home damage among her neighbors. She was also able to ride around town and document, so people could see what was going on and how their homes and neighborhoods had fared.

“I tried to fill all the requests, but I just couldn’t get around to everywhere,” she said. She got lots of calls and messages via phone, email and the internet. Because officials were very active getting things cleaned up and back to working order, she did not want to get in anyone’s way.

“But being able to get pictures and inform people of what it was like was kind of a cool sensation,” she said. She noted that it was also dangerous for too many people to be moving around on the island early on, because so many roads were washed out and there was so much debris.

“Yes, I think I would stay next time. I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone. I’m in good health; my husband’s in good health. We have some neighbors who are not in such good health, and I would definitely recommend for them to leave the island, but I would stay again I think, because I’m sure you won’t get my husband off the island.”