You may know Mary Johnson as "Mrs. Johnson" because she may have been your kindergarten teacher! She taught K-3rd grade for 33 years at Sonora Elementary before retiring 10 years ago to quilt, garden and enjoy coffee with her friends.

Late Friday night, Nov. 12, 2021, Mary smelled something burning and discovered her house was filled with smoke. The smoke was so thick she barely escaped out the front door. By the time she got to safety the whole house was engulfed in flames. Mary has lost everything to fire and smoke damage. She will be facing many expenses as she cleans up, rebuilds and waits for the insurance claims. Right now she has immediate clothing and shelter costs. As her journey unfolds she will have the expense of furnishing and outfitting her home and covering the many expenses insurance does not. Later she will be able to accept gifts of household goods but not at this time.

Mary is usually the first one to bring food or help to others. This is difficult for her to be on the receiving end of the "Giving Tree." She wants everyone to know how grateful she is for your well wishes and donations.

(Go Fund Me wants me to tell you about myself and the purpose of this campaign. I am the art teacher at Sonora Elementary and worked with Mary for many years and am lucky to call her my friend. I know that there will be many, many unexpected expenses as she goes forward and insurance will not cover them all. The funds raised will go directly to her and be used by her to cover these expenses.)