Rebuild the Lives of Marian & Alfredo Lopez
Marian Smeraldi-Lopez works for Miami Dade County Public Schools as a registrar at Ruth K. Broad Bay Harbor K-8 Center. I am Jaye Chipy and I worked with Ms. Lopez for several years at RKBBH. This GoFundMe has been established to support her family as they recover from the tragic events they survived and the losses they suffered when their home collapsed around them.
In the early morning hours of June 24th Marian, her husband Alfredo and their son Michael were asleep in their 6th floor unit at Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida when a thunderous rumbling rocked the building and jolted them awake.
The family quickly grabbed their eyeglasses, phones, and shoes using bedside flashlights and began their immediate escape. Alfredo opened the front door and saw that half of the building was gone. With no ceiling, walls, or neighboring apartments on the north side the Lopez family quickly made it to the only remaining stairwell on the south side.
Just a few flights down they found an 88 year old neighbor unable to go any further on her own. Without hesitation Alfredo scooped up the neighbor and carried her on his shoulder the rest of the way through the flooded garage to the pile of rubble below, making it safely across the collapsed pool deck to the beach.
While Marian, Alfredo and Michael realize how blessed they are to have escaped with their lives, they lost everything else. Though they are still in complete shock and totally overwhelmed by traumatic events they endured, they know they have no choice but to begin the daunting task of rebuilding.
There are moments in everyone's lives where we simply need help and this is where Marian and Alfredo now find themselves. Having escaped with only the pajamas they wore, their lives need to be rebuilt completely. Donations will be withdrawn from the fund directly and solely by the Lopez family to pay for the replacement of essential items, housing, and related expenses. No donation is too small and every donation is necessary and so very appreciated. On behalf of the Lopez family, thank you.
