My Parents lost everything in 5 minutes.
I've been crying a lot today because I don't know how to tell my mother it's too dangerous for her to search the rubble of our home for her wedding ring.
"Satellite images show Phoenix and Talent, Oregon, have been nearly wiped out by wildfire "— CNN, 9/10/22
On Tuesday the 'Almeda Drive Fire' leveled my childhood home entirely.
With literally minute's notice to flee, my mother Corlette, father Brian, and brother Josh escaped with only enough time to collect my Dad's diabetes medicine and *most* of their three pets. To quote my Dad,
"I thought we would just be coming back home."
EVERYTHING else burned.
All 90+ of our neighbors' homes burned.
Talent, OR (population 6,641) where my parent's started our family has been erased overnight.
Already laid-off due to Covid, my family have no savings, and like most of their neighbors—no insurance. Even now, my mother is still delivering newspapers despite the fact that half of her route no longer exists.
The documents required to apply for aid were destroyed in the fire, and in evacuation they barely have shelter to sleep under let alone "private office space" to start the process of recovering documents and applying for aid.
Without your help, no money is coming to them—so I'm here to shamelessly plead for your help. If you can't donate, sharing is just as valuable so if you've read this far—please share or donate because we have no Plan B.
Every gesture helps remind my family that they still have a community who cares, and a future to look forward to. Thank you so much, and please support anyone else affected by these fires if you can.
