One plus about small town life is the way folks come together to support a neighbor in need. Such was the case Monday morning when members of the American Legion Post 272 Ladies Auxiliary rushed to help a local resident and his family just hours after a fire damaged their home.
Jimmy Mitchell was awakened at 5:45 a.m. by his frightened daughter. “Daddy, the house is on fire!” she shouted. Mitchell says he found his living room chair completely engulfed in flames with fire running up the curtains. He threw the chair outside and reached to pull the curtains down before the flames made it to the ceiling. As he did, some plastic insulation had melted onto the curtains and dripped, causing a serious burn to his right hand.
Meanwhile, Mitchell’s daughter, who happens to be about eight months pregnant, ran for water and the family managed to extinguish the blaze themselves.
Mitchell believes a faulty wire is to blame for the fire.
“Another 10 minutes and it would have been a goner,” he remarks, noting that the damage was contained to the living room area where a wall was totally destroyed. “I was planning to replace that wall, but not today.”
Fortunately, several family members and friends arrived first thing Monday to pitch in and help him repair his home. Also lost in the fire were baby clothes that had been given to Mitchell’s daughter on Sunday at a baby shower. She had placed them in the living room chair before she went to bed Sunday night.
Mitchell explains that the house was a gift from his mother and truly a blessing. With help from his daughter and her boyfriend, he has been doing extensive repairs to the home and recently added central heat and air conditioning. The damages from the fire were a setback, but the family plans to move past it and continue their home improvement efforts.
Without insurance, the family was unsure of how they would pay for the repairs. But the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary stepped in just five hours after the blaze and donated $300 to the Mitchell family. The Mitchells are extremely grateful and extend their appreciation to all the members.
