Several Locust Grove families have been displaced following a fire which ravaged through a section of town homes.
According to the Lake of the Woods Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company, crews responded to a two-alarm townhouse fire in the 35000 block of Sara Court in the Germanna Heights neighborhood in Locust Grove Friday, January 23 at approximately 10 p.m. The fire was rapidly advancing, driven by wind, spreading from one townhome to six others. Firefighters operated through the night to stop further extension and stabilize the scene. Crews from across Orange, Spotsylvania and Culpeper counties assisted.
The fire displaced seven families, some multi-generational with children ranging from toddler age to high school as well as pets. The American Red Cross was called in to assist. Local residents also showed up to support their neighbors. A donation event was quickly arranged by the next morning at Locust Grove Elementary School with requests for clothing, shoes, toiletries, school supplies, pet food and gift cards.
Locust Grove Elementary School Counselor Brandi Dubey said the event was a collaborative effort. Dubey said she received a call about the fire Friday night which spurred her to seek ways to contribute to relief efforts.
“On Saturday morning, I reached out to Destiny Knight, a resident who lives just across the street from these seven families,” Dubey said. “She was explaining that she was establishing a donation hub at her house. This revelation prompted me to envision a larger scale of action and enlist the help of more individuals.”
Dubey contacted assistant principal Sonya Walsh to discuss turning the elementary school into a central hub for donations. Ninety minutes later the school was ready to accept donations. Principals, teachers, school counselors, instructional aids and other support staff members from multiple Orange County Public Schools, as well as the driver of bus 10 who drives the students stood outside to collect donations, sort them and help bag them.
“Staff members and community members showed up in an incredible way,” Locust Grove Middle School Counselor Briana Hall said. “What began as a small effort grew rapidly as more people asked how they could help.
Dubey said that due to the overwhelming number of items received, donations were halted at 1 p.m.
“As a new member of the Orange County Public Schools’ community and the great Orange community, I was impressed with the speed and level of support that was shown in the moments after the fire was reported,” Locust Grove Elementary School Principal James Snyder said. “Orange County is blessed with a strong and supportive community that does care for one another and it shows in acts like the one I witnessed on Friday and Saturday.”
Three busloads of donations were transported to the Somerset Community Pool House which was later transformed into a store for the affected families. Dubey said she’s grateful for the collaboration of Hannah Sales and Brandi Hill who are members of the community’s homeowners association committee.
“These seven families have been incredibly grateful for the generous donations they received,” Dubey said. “The majority of their needs have been met.”
Dubey said given the limited space in their current accommodations, gift cards proved particularly helpful. Monetary donations are also being accepted. The Yates Family has a GoFundMe setup at https://gofund.me/9dd081b30. Three families have Cash App: $grzyb919; $trustnBlessed; $melvinsalamanca. One has Paypal: Dgiant. Two have Apple Pay: ashley.staheli5@gmail.com and Andiprayed@gmail.com.
“Seeing these students and their families still smiling today is precisely why I worked so hard to organize a larger community donation event,” Dubey said.
“We are incredibly grateful for the support shown and proud of how our Locust Grove community came together to care for another,” Hall added.
