Bounce Back from Fire

I awoke at 12:30 am on Sunday, August 28, 2022, to the sound of crackling outside my bedroom window. I moved the curtain and saw orange glowing light. I screamed for my partner Cliff. "Fire! Fire!" The whole second story of our humble trailer was on fire. I called 911, and the dispatcher urged us to get out of the house now! The trailer was filling with smoke, and I knew the ceiling was close to collapsing, but I had to get our furry family out first. Unfortunately, I was not thinking too clearly and hung up on the dispatcher because I needed two hands to get our family out (sorry,

dispatcher). Luckily we were able to get ourselves, our precious four cats and amazing husky X out in time.

My name is Heather. I live in Hungry Horse, MT. I have the privilege and honor of working as a sous chef at the famous and delicious plant-based eatery, Dan d'Lion, a few blocks from my house. I also enjoy teaching preschool for Gateway to Learning. I love my Montana community, where I enjoy drumming and gathering for celebration. I feel a strong connection to this land and am so grateful for all I have. It is not easy for me to put myself out there and ask for help. I am also grateful for the encouragement of my friends to take steps to manifest what is needed in our fire recovery adventure.

I met Cliff Bruns when I was 16, and though he was a phenomenal chef for many years, he soon realized his true calling was building. He started with kitchen cabinets and quickly moved on to houses, especially alternative houses. He is very creative, artistic and thrifty.

We bought a small piece of property and put a trailer on it. Cliff went to town renovating and creating a beautiful space for us to live. The kitty coup Condo he built enabled the cats to be in the trees with access to the house. Cliff then built a second story and made it his shop. Unfortunately, this is where the fire destroyed all of his building tools and clothing. We need to tear down part of the burned and water-damaged trailer and build a new roof before the snow flies, which could happen any day here in the Flathead. Cliff will have to take off several weeks of work to rebuild.

Our priority is to repair our roof and bathroom before the snow flies. We are dreaming of a "barn raising" event where we can host a weekend of demolition and a weekend of repair. We will feed you and celebrate you. Coming together, in this way, is a renaissance of community support and creative ways of helping one another. Instead of a setback, we look at this fire as a chance to reenvision our plan to build natural additions such as cobb and cordwood rooms that nestle in the trees where we steward the land.

We will need to rebuild and get through another splendid Montana winter. Anything you could contribute would be greatly appreciated. Following is a list of some of the things we lost:

chopsaw

table saw

compressor

circular saw

hand saw

wrenches

screwdrivers

socket set

Sawzall

drill bits

lumber/plywood

construction and roofing screws

metal roofing

wheelbarrow

small battery chain saw

small electric snow blower

extension cords

insulation

flooring

exterior door

snow shovel, shovels, rakes

experienced sawyer to fell trees

portable sawmill, or help cutting up logs into lumber

labor to remove the old burnt roof and water-damaged ceiling

men's winter clothes, size L, tall

Before the fire.