Art Teacher's Home Catches Fire; Loses Everything

This is Ira David Levy with my sister and Brother-in-Law, Rhonda and Glen Wolk. At 1 a.m. Saturday, June 17, our first cousin, Paula Zimmerman was sound asleep in her two-story house just outside of Washington, D.C. Our aunt Barbara, visiting, was also asleep. A light sleeper, our aunt awakened to the sound of a random person pounding on their door and screaming, "Smoke, Smoke!"

My aunt grabbed my cousin and they escaped with one of her two dogs through the front of the house. Within minutes intense flames engulfed the home and took the life of their second dog. More than 100 firefighters from 20 units doused the fire that grew so hot it melted their car by the carport.

While firefighters investigate the cause, our cousin and her two daughters, who luckily slept away that night, lost everything: clothes, school supplies, art supplies, computers, furntiture, kitchenware and all their irreplaceable keepsakes.

Paula teaches art at the Washington Yu Ying school in Washington, a dual-language Chinese immersion school; and, she is a single mom raising two teenage daughters.

She is in immediate need of the basics listed above. On behalf of our entire family, any help you can give is appreciated.

With our gratitude,

Ira David, Rhonda and Glenn