By Pat Jenkins The Dispatch Community members are organizing support for a Graham-area family whose home was destroyed in a fire earlier this month. Mikael and Greg Caillier and their adult daughter, Lindsay, are living on their property in a motor home that was donated for temporary housing. The motor home is parked near the house that burned down March 12 in a fire that apparently was caused by an electrical problem. No one was injured in the fire, but the family lost virtually all of their belongings. An online account for financial donations has been set up at http://www.gofundme.com/rebuildingourhome, and donations of household items and clothing are being accepted. The latter is being coordinated through Sara Lamrouex, who can be reached at 253-307-3879. Lamrouex and other community members who didn't know the family previously have joined with friends of the Cailliers to help replace clothing and other items that were lost in the fire, which is the latest of several major setbacks GÇô some of them medical GÇô that the family has endured. "This is what a community should do for people when they need help, and this family is very caring and wonderful despite everything that has happened to them. They deserve our support,GÇ¥ Lamrouex said. Online donations of money have been accompanied by personal messages, such as "Sending hope" and "I'm praying you find relief soon from the heartache you're going through.GÇ¥ Mikael Caillier said her family is "amazed" and thankful for the support of strangers, some of whom have quickly become friends. Longtime friends and associates of the family also have come to the Cailliers' aid. "These relationships truly will last our lifetimes,GÇ¥ Mikael said. The day of the fire, Mikael was driving home when, from the Graham Hill on State Route 161, she saw smoke in the distance. She began to fear the worst as she neared 288th Street East and could see smoke billowing from the direction of their house that sat just off 288th. Graham Fire and Rescue officials said the single-story house was burning heavily when firefighters arrived, making it too dangerous for them to enter. Greg was away at work. Lindsay was home. She escaped safely, but one of the family's cats died in the fire. On a recent morning, Mikael stood in the doorway of the motor home while looking at the charred remains of their house. She said it's too early to know how much insurance will cover in replacement costs, since cleanup will likely be expensive and take a large part of an insurance payout that otherwise would go toward rebuilding. The Cailliers are still raising 25 Arabian horses on their property. In the wake of the fire, the family spent three nights in a hotel paid for by the Red Cross, then was left with a horse barn for a place to sleep until the motor home was donated. "We're getting by. That's all we can ask for," Mikael said. The Cailliers already knew what it's like to cope with serious complications. Lindsay, 34, has traumatic brain injury caused by brain cancer when she was 10. Dave lost a job when a longtime employer closed a plant. And Mikael is recovering from the latest of four surgeries in her bout with colon cancer. The family's resiliency and sense of hope inspires Taunya Candiliere, one of the community members who have befriended them. "When I go home after being around them, my outlook is better because their outlook is so good," she said. Candiliere said she and Angela Estabrook, who has taken dinner to the Cailliers, Lamrouex and others didn't know each other until getting involved through pleas for help via social media. But now, "we've all made good friends through this," Candiliere.
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment