Reno family escapes riots Indonesia

Greg and Carolyn Gammon and their 13-year-old son, Toby, were among 149 people evacuated from the island of Ambon to Australia as bloody clashes between Christians and Muslims continue to escalate.

The Gammons, who have lived in Indonesia off and on for 18 years, are members of the Texas-based Christian Summer Institute of Linguistics.

"It was a frightening situation," said Gammon, a Reno High School graduate. "We saw an awful lot of unrest, with whole communities overrun and burned, and with folks injured."

Although he and his wife are eager to return to Ambon, they also look forward to coming home to Reno, Gammon said.

"We have been overseas much of the time since 1979, but Reno is very much an alive, active home base for us," he said. "We were just there 1 1/2 years ago, and we are due to be back home this next May for a full year."

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