BULLARD, Texas — A family in Bullard is giving thanks after community members helped them pick up the pieces when a fire destroyed their home.
"Wednesday morning about 5:45, we heard beeping we initially thought it was one of the kids’ watch alarms, and then realized it was the fire alarm when a second smoke detector started going off," said Nichole Smith, a nurse at Christus Trinity Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler.
On March 20, the Smith family had their lives turned upside down when they woke up to a fire burning from within their garage. Weary-eyed and half awake, mom and dad woke up with one thing at the top of mind: get the kids up and get them to safety.
"We’ve always taught our kids to run to the mailbox at the end of the road there to get away from danger, or the neighbor’s house, and stay together so we knew they were all safe. Which they did exactly what they were supposed to," Smith said.
After that, 911 calls were made, and Smith said that volunteers from Tyler, Bullard, and other fire departments came out immediately to put out the flames. The damage had largely already been done, but Smith said she’s been in contact with the Red Cross. The nonprofit will provide additional assistance to the family moving forward.
Red Cross East Texas Executive Director Karen Holt said the East Texas chapter has seen almost 600 disasters in the area, and 530 of those roughly have been home fires.
"And so any time someone suffers a disaster, our team of great volunteers are there providing comfort and hope," Holt said.
The last seven days have been a lot for the Smith family. But it’s been the kindness and the generosity of the surrounding East Texas community that’s gotten the family through this really difficult time.
"We’ve had neighbors we’ve met in the past stop by and see what they can do to help. We’ve had not just our church but a couple other churches reach out to make sure that we have meals and clothes and housing. We had a beekeeper stop by and check on my beehives. We lost all our bee supplies and so this beekeeper stopped by and checked," Smith said.
For now, the Smiths are living with a friend just a couple miles away. Despite everything that’s happened, they’re grateful to be a part of the generous East Texas community.
If you want to support the Smith family in their recovery, you can donate directly to them here.