Support for Mark and Lesia -- Home Fire

My name is Greta and I am a friend of Mark and Lesia. We all live and volunteer together at Desert Haven Animal Refuge where we take care of and help find homes for rescued dogs and cats. Their motor-home, in which they live full-time and permanently, burned down today.

This morning, while Lesia and Mark, who have been caring for the cats and dogs of Desert Haven for over 4 years, were feeding our little rescues, their motor home, which is on the refuge grounds, set ablaze.

Upon realizing their home was in flames, they scrambled and were able to get their two dogs out of their fenced yard to safety. They tried to enter the home to get their four cats to safety however they were unable to get into the home. We are heart-broken to share that Mark and Lesia's four kitty babies perished in the fire.

All six of their animals were loved beyond measure. Scooby and Savannah were adopted from Dogtown right here from Desert Haven Animal Refuge. These two dogs were extremely loving and mothering with the young felines Lesia and Mark took in.

Their cats Winken and Blinken were rescued by Mark and Lesia at 5 days old, bottle-nursed round-the-clock, and raised with care and love. Winken and Blinken were two-and-a-half years old. Vista was a sweet, very young, girl kitten they rescued from the local Animal Shelter when she needed a hero. The couple gave Vista the vet care needed to help her live a healthy and fun life. Vista was one-year-old. Chaos was a tiny kitten they adopted a few months ago from the Animal Shelter. Mark described Chaos as the Life of the Party. We are grieving with Mark and Lesia as we say Rest in Paradise to each of their four cats who crossed the Rainbow Bridge today.

Because of the quick action of Dispatch, the TorC and Palomas Fire Departments, State Patrol, Sheriff's Department, and Sierra Electric, who were all on the scene to do their parts to put out the fire, the fire was contained to their motor-home. All Desert Haven cats and dogs are safe and unharmed. We thank each of the responders who came to Desert Haven today to keep us all safe.

We extend our condolences and our love to Mark and Lesia for all of their losses today. The couple have lost their home, all of their belongings, their four beloved cats and kittens, and, at the moment, their hope. They need to replace items of clothing, home goods, their home, everything. We are helping them raise money to offset some of the costs of restarting. Thank you for your help.