Hello, my name is Sara and I'd like to tell you about my good friend David Dill. David Dill is a 39-year-old war veteran who dedicated years of his life to serving our country and others in need. David is the type of person who thinks of others more than himself. David owned a home on South Whidbey Island and over the years has homed and helped many people who were in desperate situations. When I hit rock bottom in my personal life, David was the first person to help me. Without any hesitation, he let me stay in his home knowing well that I had no money to pay him for rent or to say thank you with. David wanted to help anyway because that's who he is. If David was on his way to work and saw a person with a flat tire on the side of the road, he'd stop and help that person without any hesitation. If someone needed money or a ride to work or help moving or help with pretty much anything really, David would be there for you.

Well the tables have turned for David and now he is the one who is in need of help. A few nights ago, on the evening of February 13th, David was in his room playing video games online while chatting on Discord with a close friend. All was fine until David heard a odd noise. He decided to investigate what the noise was. David walked out of his room to the shock of his life; his home was engulfed in flames. With the home filled with fire, David had to act fast. First, David alerted and helped his elderly and disabled tenant escape the fire by aiding the tenant out of a bedroom window to safety. Then David grabbed his fire extinguisher and tried to save what he could of his home and to rescue his cat Mowgli. David did his best but ultimately, there was nothing else he could do to save his home. He wanted to find his cat but ran out of time and had to escape out the bedroom window himself. By the time the fire department showed up a few minutes later, the house was fully engulfed in flames. The fire department tried their best to fight the fire but ultimately all they could do was control the burn from spreading. David left in an ambulance to the hospital because of some burns and smoke inhalation. He watched his home burn as the ambulance pulled him away.

After David was cleared at the hospital a few hours later, he went back to his property to see what was left of his home and found the firefighters couldn't do anything else to extinguish the flames. In a matter of hours, the house was gone and all David could do was watch his home disintegrate. The following morning, he saw the heartbreaking rubble of what used to be his home. To add insult to injury, he also found the remains of his poor dead cat that didn't make it out the open window. Mowgli the cat was buried on the property shortly after being found.

It is beyond heartbreaking to watch such a good friend and kind soul be hit this hard all at once.

David has lost everything in the house fire and has been living one day at a time in order to process and cope. He has been bouncing between staying in a hotel or staying in the barn on his property in 35-degree weather. He has been doing his best to keep positive and to push forward. Anything you can give to help the man get back on his feet while he figures out his next steps would be a blessing. David has spent his life serving other people and now he needs your help, please don’t let him down.