Your relatives sounded like they were fortunate. I saw some of the devastation, and it was pretty amazing to note the water line on some of the houses in the residential neighborhoods in GF. Some two story houses had waterlines near the roofline.
I like that you posted the income comparisons...maybe (probably) its the pride of being raised up here but I believe it makes us way more resourceful and even tempered. The winter and toughing it out year after year does that to people.