Helping my mother recover from a devastating fire

Hi, my name is Brenda and I am reaching out in hopes of helping my mother recover from a structure fire that consumed a lifetime's worth of belongings and memories. Donations will go towards cleaning, hotel stays, food, storage unit for salvageable items, toiletries, furniture, clothing, shoes, kitchen utensils, blankets and sheets, pillows, the list goes on and on. Any and every donation is appreciated, thank you all for your time and contribution.

On February 23, 2024 at 12:35am my mother received a phone call that her apartment building was on fire. My mother had just recently moved into her new apartment and just weeks ago we emptied out her storage unit and she finally had all her belongings and memories in one place. In January of this year, my younger brother and his wife welcomed home a beautiful baby boy, my mother's 6th grandson!! Since my mother is on a fixed income she struggled to save the money necessary to travel from Minnesota to Washington to meet her new grand baby, she was finally able to afford the trip and while she was out of town the most unthinkable happened, a devastating fire engulfed every physical memory my mother had ever cherished, every picture of loved ones no longer with us, baby pictures, every souvenir ever collected, every creation that my brother's and I made for her throughout our childhood, the rosary she carried at her own father's funeral when she was only a child, the family Bible, irreplaceable item's that mean more to my mother than any monetary amount turned into ashes or damaged by smoke and extinguisher foam in a matter of minutes.

This woman has selflessly given more than she has ever received, she never asks for help but will not hesitate to help anyone who needs it.

If you know my mother, Brenda Contreras, than you know how devastating this loss is to her, along with my 2 brothers we are and will continue to help our mother maneuver this difficult and confusing transition. She basically has to start all over, The Red Cross has her in a hotel until she can find another residence and we are scrambling to figure it out.

Although we are grateful that there were no injuries or lives lost in the fire we were not prepared for the financial aspect of getting through this major life event, it wasn't until I started to assess what was salvageable and what was not that I started to tally up things like shoes, all her shoes are gone, everything in the bathroom and kitchen, no more dresser, all her clothes, no more bed, all important paperwork and documents, and so much more.

I love my mother and would do anything for her, even make this campaign knowing that she does not want to ask for help but please, I'm begging you, please consider helping if you can, if you can not help monetarily we are also in need of resource information and any kind of emotional support, it's not easy to watch her go through this. Thank you for reading my post, hug your loved ones tight and never hold back letting them know how much you love them. I love you mama!!