The Ninth Day of Holiday Giving
My friends say I travel a lot. That’s true. It seems they know me well. What they may not know is the process it takes for me to get out the door. You see, I have a fear that my house won’t be there when I return because of a fire. I take precautions like making sure electrical appliances are off and some even unplugged. I check the smoke alarm batteries. Almost anything you can think of, I do. Here’s the thing about fires, sometimes it doesn’t matter the precautionary measure you take, it will happen. You just hope someone will be there for you – a family member, a friend or a great organization like the Red Cross. I hope you’ll think about this while reading the story of how one friend’s simple phone call to the Red Cross made a huge difference to Karina Gonzalez after her home was destroyed by fire.
“As Karina Gonzalez looked on her Bethlehem, Pa., property, she couldn’t believe the nightmare she was living. “I really thought this cannot be real. I cannot be looking through my house. I had no roof and no walls. My home was gone,” Gonzalez said, her voice cracking.
“But you … you gave me peace and I appreciate that. Everything you do directly affects the lives of people who are in great need,” she said as she described what the help of the Red Cross meant to her.
Gonzalez detailed the tragedy of losing her home and possessions to fire. Gonzalez was in Washington, D.C., celebrating a friend’s birthday over a long weekend when she received a call from the Bethlehem Police Department stating there was a fire at her home. “I asked the police officer how bad the fire was. All he could tell me was that there was significant damage and he needed to know how soon I could be home.
“In your head, you think ‘significant damage.’ Well, my living room could be significant. My front door could be significant. Anything is significant when it’s in terms of what you call home,” she continued.
Gonzalez’s home was burned to the foundation. She was later told that the fire began at 3:00 a.m. and went undetected until seven when someone driving by saw black smoke in the woods and called the police. One of Gonzalez’s closest friends called the Red Cross to meet Gonzalez at her property. “My first reaction was that I was going to be OK. There is someone with a greater need than mine who can use the Red Cross, I told my friend.
“When the Red Cross arrives, the first feeling that you get is compassion, a sense of understanding and that immediate help. As I sat there in the Red Cross vehicle, my observations were how well they were organized, how smoothly things ran and how little burden – no, no burden – was placed on me.
“I remember volunteer Al [Ellis] telling me about the hotel arrangements he made for me. He said, ‘Here’s what you are going to do: You are going to this hotel. You will give them your name. They will have a room ready for you. I have already called them and they are expecting you.’
“I cannot tell you what that means to someone like me who couldn’t believe the nightmare that I was living,” said Gonzalez. “Another volunteer gave me a debit card and explained how to use it to purchase clothes and food. And, I got a toothbrush. A toothbrush! You don’t think of that kind of stuff.”
Gonzalez thanked the Red Cross, saying: “If you only knew the lives you have touched behind the scenes. For future donors, please know that when you are watching TV and see the news about a fire or other disaster and wonder what you can do to help, this is it. Give to the Red Cross.”
This holiday season you can help families like Karina Gonzalez. For a $200 gift, you can provide
Shelter and Food for 1 family affected by fire. sudden fire can leave a family’s dreams in ashes. But Red Cross volunteers always act quickly to provide emotional and practical support. Your gift will provide one day’s worth of food and shelter to a family to keep them going until they have a place to call home again.
Kimberly
Kimberly Pratt is the Communication Coordinator for the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter.