It was the kind of news that could sink the weakest of souls, but weak is not a word you would ever use for Keila Maysonet Nichols. The local wife and mother of two learned early Sunday that her husband Ritchie and his father were missing after their capsized boat was found on Lake Moultrie near Charleston, South Carolina. They were caught up in a storm Saturday while fishing. The boat was reportedly spotted by someone passing by the lake Sunday morning, WCSC news in Charleston reports.
Keila reached out to her friends and the public on social media and pleaded with people to pray. A short time later, she shared the good news that her father-in-law Richard had been rescued but “my love is still not found,” she wrote. “Please pray.”
People did.
Hundreds of friends, even strangers, offered up prayers and reached out to Keila with words of comfort and encouragement. They were thrilled when she posted a video later, rejoicing that her husband was found alive.
Ritchie Nichols was found on an island around 2:50 p.m. Sunday (June 28). Rescuers pulled his 60-year-old father from the water at 1:20 p.m., according to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office. He spent 12 hours in the water before being rescued.
Both men were weak and dehydrated, but alert and conscious, officials say. They were admitted to a hospital in North Charleston where the family will be reunited.
“These are the moments that it counts,” Keila said in a stirring Facebook Live video. “When you’re down in the dumps and you don’t think there is a God that listens, you get on your face before Him and you tell Him that He is good, that He is worthy, that He is almighty and all-knowing and, trust me, He will hear you and He will answer because He is the God of this universe and He is the God of my life.”
Faith over fear
When Keila feared her husband was dead, she leaned on the one thing that has always gotten her through – faith. It’s been forged in the challenges she and her husband face raising a child with special needs.
The Nichols’ 15-year-old daughter Mariana has cerebral palsy. She can’t walk or talk and requires around the clock care. And while many marriages crumble beneath the weight of such responsibility, the Nichols’ hasn’t. In fact, in a 2014 interview with Now Habersham, they said Mariana’s condition has brought them closer together as a couple and family.
On this day, that tight bond and deep devotion gave them even greater cause to celebrate.
Through tears of relief and gratitude, Keila said, “This could have been a different story. I could have been preparing for my husband’s funeral, but my God is the deliverer. He is God of all and He came through for me and my family today like no other.”
