By Ed Offley
Several dozen West Beaches residents have banded together to raise rebuilding funds for a local convenience store destroyed by a tornado on April 10.
The Blu Convenience Store & Deli is back in service at a temporary site adjacent to its original address at 17836 Front Beach Road on the west end of Panama City Beach, but owners Tom and Sara Pulatov are looking forward to reopening in their original building later this year.
To assist the couple, Beach residents Patty King Hester and Ginger Summer held an initial fundraising event at the store on June 15, where several dozen fans of the Pulatovs gathered to deliver personal donations. Summer said they plan for a larger event in October to coincide with the Thunder Beach autumn rally.
“This is the community coming together to help the community,” Hester told the gathering on June 15. “We’re just trying to give [Tom and Sara] peace of mind to regain their piece of paradise.”
