'We're Not In This Alone': Vacaville Family Of 8 Loses Home To Wildfires
VACAVILLE (CBS13) - A burned-out car and a pile of charred rubble sit on the land Sabrina Summerfield had hoped to build her new family home in Vacaville. Now, the family of eight doesn't have a home to return to.
They were living in two trailers. One is nothing but a pile of ashes. The other is a total loss from the heat and smoke.
"It was just very chaotic, you could feel the fire ashes. They were almost like hail. They were heavy like hail," Summerfield said.
This was her first time ever escaping a wildfire.
"I was happy we were all safe together and saying goodbye to our home and property. I was accepting that moment but sad at the same time," Summerfield said.
That's where the Little Dress Project came in. The Vacaville nonprofit donates school clothes to children in need, but with no one going back to class during the pandemic, CEO Barb Stocking is now focusing on fire victims.
"I mean, she had a baby on her hip and an 18-year-old son walk through the door. So I can't imagine," Stocking said.
Summerfield, her husband and their six children left with only a basket of dirty clothes. The kids had only the jammies they were wearing in the middle of the night.
Pictures and special family jewelry are gone. But now, there's a glimmer of hope as they've suddenly been surrounded by community support.
"Vacaville, as big as it's grown still has...I'm gonna cry...has that small town feel and I've never seen so many people come forward and want to help," Stocking said. "It's just amazing to see what this community has done. I'm very proud to be a part of it."
"It showed me that there's still good community, friends, family members out there watching out for you – that we're not in this alone. That when people say, 'what do you need, how can we help?' they really mean it," Summerfield said.