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Mary McLeod Nelson, 82, of Vancouver, Wash., has been a resident at the home since March 2003. She said that although she thought the Gulfport home would hold up, she never doubted she'd be cared for if anything happened to the building. "I think we all had great confidence that the building was strong," she said. "And I've always had confidence in my country and in the people that run our services - Navy, Army, all of them.


I never for a moment thought that we wouldn't get out, because they would take care of us, and it's a very good feeling."

Another resident who made the bus trip was Edythe Jackman, 95. In a separate interview, she said the storm and the long ride to Washington didn't faze her a bit.

"Honey, I'm from Oklahoma, where we have tornadoes all the time," she said. "I'm kind of used to all these crises, so it didn't bother me. I wasn't concerned about surviving the storm," she said.

And though she's confined to a wheelchair, the more than 1,000-mile bus ride from Gulfport to Washington didn't bother her. "I like to travel. I like the bus, I like the planes, wherever they send me I go," said Jackman.

Nelson said she was moved by the welcome the evacuees received here.

"These were strangers lined up, and they all clapped and greeted us and said, 'Welcome home!' And that's just what it was," she said. "So this is like coming home to friends and family, although we didn't even know them. They were wonderful, and they even prayed for us.

So I'm very touched. It's just a heartfelt thing to think that you're part of something so great as all these service people together care about each other."