A fire claims this family's beloved Mother, home, and cars.

Thomas Cunningham is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Christina Whiteside.

Donation protected

On May 25th, 2024 at 3:54 a.m., a Vero Beach family was awoken to flames engulfing their mobile home. In the matter of moments, they were outside and witnessing the destruction of all their possessions, and all the memories they had made within. They made it outside the house with just the clothes on their back, completely overwhelmed with the situation they found themselves in. The worst news was yet to hit them, as they frantically looked among them and realised their head count was one short. Sheryl Small, beloved Mother of survivor Christina Whiteside, and Mother-in-law to Carl Bainter, tragically did not make it out of the house. Christina and Carl were now not only without their home and cars, which they needed to use to make a living, but were reeling with the death of someone so dear to them, who they had spent their whole lives with. Hearing emergency vehicles on the way, they could only watch as the flames grew higher and more ferocious, leaving them helpless to save their loved one trapped inside.

We are making this gofundme on behalf of Christina Whiteside and her husband Carl Bainter. Christina, or how her friends and co-workers know her as "Chrisy", is truly one of the kindness, most generous and supportive people you could ever meet. Christina has always put others before herself, making her environment better and brighter with presence. She is extremely hardworking, helpful, and personable. Many of us know Chrisy as our supervisor at Indian River Mall, which she helps run and operate. You can bring any question or concern to Chrisy and she will be there to help solve it. She is responsible for employing dozens of workers who she has a personal and unique relationship with, helping them reach their goals.

We have never seen Christina or Carl ask for handouts or charity. It is only with this indescribable tragedy that we have decided a gofundme was a necessary step. Christina and Carl have lost everything and we are reaching out to the Vero Beach, and greater Indian River community for help. Any amount is appreciated, and all we want is to see Christina and Carl get some semblance of what they had taken from them back. Sheryl Small can never be replaced, but your contribution can help them get a roof over their head, a car to get back and forth to work, or some food on the table. Thank you so much for any contribution. Attached below are photos of the horrific aftermath of the fire showing the complete destruction of the family home and cars, and a link to an article describing the event.