Family of nine needs help after devastating blaze

March 15, 2005

Frontiersman editorial board

You never know when an unexpected tragedy will happen. One day you're living out your everyday life, attending rehearsal, grocery shopping, building a new home and your family's future, while the next day, you find yourself homeless.

Such is the fate of the Smith family, who lost their home and most of their belongings last Friday in a devastating house fire.

The family of nine, with one more on the way, has been placed in the unfortunate dilemma of rebuilding their life from the ground up. Clothing, dishes, cookware, bedding, furniture, appliances and toys all need to be replaced. Virtually all of the everyday essentials are needed.

With seven children ranging in age from two to 14, there's a long list of items the family will need to replace.

Hope's Helping Hands is a community outreach program, managed by the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, that is designed to help people get through temporary setbacks like the one the Smith family is currently facing. We serve as a collection site for money, clothes, household or other items that would benefit Mat-Su residents in need of a helping hand.

All checks should be made payable to Hope's Helping Hands. All donations for the Smith family may be dropped by our office at 5751 E. Mayflower Court, Wasilla, AK 99654. Financial contributions may be mailed to the same address.

While the Smith family has many material items they will need to replace, the family counts itself among the fortunate, in that no family member was injured or lost to the fire. The family had a fire escape plan in place, and the parents had practiced the drill with their children, so even though neither parent was at home when the fire broke out, their 14-year-old son knew just what to do to see that everyone made it out safely.

We hope other families will learn from the Smith family's experience and ensure their own home fire escape plan is in place, and all family members participate in practicing that plan.

It only takes a few minutes for a fire to completely engulf a home, and a well-planned and practiced escape route could mean the difference between life

and death.