My name is Brenda, and I am Laurie's sister. Dan and Laurie are the type of people to offer help and not ask for it. People have been asking how they can help and this fundraiser is the way our family could offer an avenue for those who wish to assist and reach out with a message for them.

 

On Nov.14, 2021 in Princeton BC, the Tulameen River forever altered the lives of Dan and Laurie and many of their neighbours as it filled homes with its raging waters. Laurie messaged me; “it is raining so hard the roof is leaking into the kitchen. The river is up to 10 feet. We can see red flashing lights on the next street; I think they are coming to tell us it’s time to evacuate”. Soon a photo of their house circulated on social media, taken from the highway above. The picture says it all.

 

We all watched the chaos that Mother Nature unleashed in Princeton that night, as it played out over and over on the news and on social media. The gravity of the aftermath became their reality a few days later when Dan and Laurie were permitted to return to what was left of their home. All the hard work and love they had put into restoring it over the last three years was gone. Just like that. It was a grim and difficult day.

 

Devastation is a strong word. But as we headed to the house the following Sunday to start clean-up efforts, it is the word that came to mind to describe what I was about to experience. When I went into the house for the first time, I was overcome with grief and sadness for them, the loss unfathomable. Looking down their street, neighbours had their whole lives piled up in heaps in front yard after front yard. Soon, Dan and Laurie’s front yard would become one of them too. Friends, strangers and neighbours showed up to lend a helping hand. Humanity at its finest.

 

This past Wednesday, Laurie was in a serious car accident on the highway between Princeton and Penticton and taken to hospital for her injuries. Thankfully, she is safe and recovering, (Lily and Lola too) and the car is a total loss. Yet another blow.

 

There is much uncertainty about what the future holds….we know it will be a very long road ahead.