A family gathers on Southridge Drive, near the back gate of their home, which was badly damaged by a fire on Monday afternoon.--NEWS PHOTO COLLIN GALLANT
Fundraising for a local family whose home was gutted by fire while they attended a funeral on Monday has shot past its goal in less than 12 hours.
The family is identified in the post as Jody and Anton Selwood and their children, one of whom uses a wheelchair and has special needs.
A relative set up that endeavour, while friends also worked offline to gather resources for the family.
Dan Davis is the president of the Medicine Hat Archery Club, where some in the family are members. The group delivered a cheque for $1,000 to the family which is staying in a local hotel.
“We’re not a big club, but we’re trying to help out,” David. “And we’re challenging other clubs to maybe see what they can provide to help.”
Close to $20,000 had been pledged by 4 p.m. on Tuesday on the popular fundraising platform “Go Fund Me” from about 200 individual donors.
The afternoon fire at the family’s Saamis area home destroyed much of the main floor and roof. Medicine Hat fire officials reported water and smoke damage throughout.
It also states that three family dogs died in the fire.
Firefighters were attempting to retrieve some specialized medical equipment following the fire as the investigation into its cause was just beginning.
