Help us recover from a fire
Donation protected
Yesterday I was feeling pretty lucky. We had just received gift cards from my brother as Christmas presents to our kids, and since it was their last day of winter break, I told them if they helped me finish laundry I would take them to GameStop and Toys R' Us to use them. My husband left for work in his car, and my 4 children and I piled into our old van to head the 25 miles to go to those stores.
The story:
Right before we were about to turn onto the highway, I noticed my engine was revving hard. Realizing that this was probably my engine dying, I took my foot off the gas and then very gently pressed again. The rpms went up to about 5,000 , but we weren't accelerating. I pulled off to the side of the road and began to call roadside assistance when I saw smoke.
I knew that I had to get my children out of the van as fast as possible. My 2 year old was asleep and completely shocked as I ripped him forcefully out of his car seat. Within minutes my car was engulfed in a large blaze. By the time the fire department put it out, nothing was left but the charred body.
Hopes dashed:
We knew we were going to try to get a newer van later this year after we got our tax return because ours had almost 200K miles on it and we were hoping to be able to take a road trip to Ohio this summer to see my sister graduate high school and my younger brother's new baby, and we knew that our van wouldn't make it. To save us some money in the mean time, we increased our deductible to $2500 on the van, well more than it was worth. This means that we will get absolutely nothing from our insurance company, even though we have comprehensive coverage.
What happens next?
While I'm so, so grateful that my children are all safe, it leaves us in a very tight position. I'm a stay at home mom and had plans to return to work after an upcoming surgery in a few weeks. However, it just won't be possible with only 1 vehicle. Since we are a family of 6, we need to have at least 1 vehicle that can fit all of us in it.
I'm reaching out to everyone, even though I don't think I deserve it, because my children do. I have never felt so much guilt and fear in my life as I did watching my van burn, hearing the tires blow out, hearing the horn go off as the fire reached it; knowing that my children had been sitting there moments before. Now I have no way to take them to their bible study and after school activities while my husband is at work. I have no way to try to bring more income into our house to help pay for the things they want and need.
How you can help:
Any money received will go towards the purchase of a used van as soon as possible. I've given up the hope of being able to travel to Ohio over the summer, right now I just would like to feel like I can meet my family's basic needs. I need to be able to run and grab a prescription or groceries, or take care of errands when they need to be done. Please help in our time of need if you are able.
Video of the fire
The story:
Right before we were about to turn onto the highway, I noticed my engine was revving hard. Realizing that this was probably my engine dying, I took my foot off the gas and then very gently pressed again. The rpms went up to about 5,000 , but we weren't accelerating. I pulled off to the side of the road and began to call roadside assistance when I saw smoke.
I knew that I had to get my children out of the van as fast as possible. My 2 year old was asleep and completely shocked as I ripped him forcefully out of his car seat. Within minutes my car was engulfed in a large blaze. By the time the fire department put it out, nothing was left but the charred body.
Hopes dashed:
We knew we were going to try to get a newer van later this year after we got our tax return because ours had almost 200K miles on it and we were hoping to be able to take a road trip to Ohio this summer to see my sister graduate high school and my younger brother's new baby, and we knew that our van wouldn't make it. To save us some money in the mean time, we increased our deductible to $2500 on the van, well more than it was worth. This means that we will get absolutely nothing from our insurance company, even though we have comprehensive coverage.
What happens next?
While I'm so, so grateful that my children are all safe, it leaves us in a very tight position. I'm a stay at home mom and had plans to return to work after an upcoming surgery in a few weeks. However, it just won't be possible with only 1 vehicle. Since we are a family of 6, we need to have at least 1 vehicle that can fit all of us in it.
I'm reaching out to everyone, even though I don't think I deserve it, because my children do. I have never felt so much guilt and fear in my life as I did watching my van burn, hearing the tires blow out, hearing the horn go off as the fire reached it; knowing that my children had been sitting there moments before. Now I have no way to take them to their bible study and after school activities while my husband is at work. I have no way to try to bring more income into our house to help pay for the things they want and need.
How you can help:
Any money received will go towards the purchase of a used van as soon as possible. I've given up the hope of being able to travel to Ohio over the summer, right now I just would like to feel like I can meet my family's basic needs. I need to be able to run and grab a prescription or groceries, or take care of errands when they need to be done. Please help in our time of need if you are able.
Video of the fire
Organizer
Britney Sias
Organizer
Maricopa, AZ
