Support Jeff Brule, Olivia Oliver, and Owen

Jeff, Olivia, and Owen lost nearly everything when their apartment building burned on Friday, January 31st. Luckily, nobody in the building was injured, but they have to rebuild their lives from the ground up.

There has been such an outpouring of support from all their family and friends that I wanted to provide a central way for everyone to help.

February 4th, 2025 by Dawn Briggs, Organizer

A lot of people are wondering how the fire happened. The details of what caused the fire are still unknown, but the fire started in a unit above them around midnight Friday night. The fire alarms in that unit did not go off and that resident was not at home when it happened. Luckily someone from another building saw the fire, notified the fire department, and yelled "Fire" in the breezeway to evacuate the building. Olivia and Owen evacuated immediately, and Jeff had approximately 1-2 minutes to try to grab essentials like wallet, keys, and important papers before having to evacuate as well. They were allowed in for 10 minutes on Saturday morning to get some clothes and shoes, but the fire is under investigation, and nobody is allowed back in until that's complete. They already know they've lost all their furniture but are hoping to be able to at least salvage some dishes and other small items when they can get back in and obviously need to find a new place to live.

Some people have mentioned they'd rather donate to them via Venmo, to do that send it to

@Jeff-Brule-2 or @Olivia-Oliver-2

Jeff and Olivia are absolutely humbled and extremely grateful for the amount of support you are all showing them. Thank you for rallying around them with your kindness and generosity and for building such a strong support community!

February 5th, 2025 by Dawn Briggs, Organizer

Today, Jeff and Olivia heard from the apartment office that the building has been declared unsafe by the authorities, and they will not be allowed back inside to even attempt to recover anything…everything is gone! Aside from the mold and mildew that has already spread though the remaining structure, the ceilings are collapsing in on the bottom apartments, so it is too unsafe for them to allow anyone in for any reason. While the majority of what they’ve lost is just stuff that can be replaced, Jeff and Olivia are devastated to have lost their most valued treasures, like Owen’s hospital bracelet from his birth, his first hat and blanket, and other first items that Olivia’s mother had just had made into a beautiful shadowbox for them, and the fur clippings and memorial to their beloved cat, Hops, who passed just before Owen was born. Jeff also spoke with the fire inspector who told him that there is basically nothing left of the structure to investigate so they will never know the cause of this heartbreak.

Several people have been kind enough to reach out with specific offers and requests and I will respond to everyone as soon as Jeff and Olivia have had the opportunity to consider your offers and requests and make decisions on how to move forward. As you can imagine, they are going through a myriad of emotions right now and need a little time to find clarity.

Again, we are truly grateful for all the support this community has given to them and extend a heartfelt thank you to all who have gone out of their way to show that they care! My personal hope is that you will continue to stand with them, and with us as a family, to get them through this difficult time.

February 14th, 2025 by Dawn Briggs, Organizer

Thank you to everyone who has been able to help!