Fiona is a local Edmontonian who has experienced loosing her home to a fire. She works at the Rogers Kiosk at WEM and told us they they have made it into a donation hub for people to bring supplies!

 

“Hello everyone,

I’m sure by now everyone has heard about the wildfires that are causing the City of Fort McMurray and the town of High Level to evacuate. 

 

As someone who lost their home to a condo fire two years ago, this tragedy really hits close to home. This is not about me by any means but I feel the need to share some insight as to what these people are going through. You will never understand what it’s like to helplessly watch on the side of the road as your home and all of your possessions disappear before your eyes. I hope that in your entire lifetime you never have to experience that hopeless feeling of only having the clothes on your back and your dog by your side.

 

The tragedy that our condo residents went through pales in comparison with the Fort Mac disaster. Half of our building didn’t have home insurance and while most of us had to wait almost two years to move back, there were some that unfortunately never had the chance to return because they had to file for bankruptcy. Our tragedy affected 200 some residents and it took almost two years to rebuild the damaged portion of our building. How long will it take for them to rebuild an entire area? Not only that, while we may have lost our homes and possessions, we were still able to maintain our jobs and depend on our regular income to pay our mortgages for our non-existent homes. Many businesses in Fort Mac have been destroyed along with thousands of residences, think of the amount of people that have lost both their homes and their source of income.

 

As our city welcomes evacuees, the Edmonton Emergency Relief Society is still currently expressing the need for specific items: 

 

  • NEW Pillows Cases
  • NEW Bras
  • NEW Socks & Underwear
  • NEW Generic Pants and T-Shirts
  • Toiletries
  • Baby wipes
  • NEW shoes
  • Water
  • Diapers

 

Sometimes it’s a little easier to grab that bag of toiletries that you brought back from Mexico or that extra case of bottled water, than to donate monetarily. This is why Rogers (West Edmonton Mall Kiosk near the ice rink) has turned into a donation hub for the week. Here you can drop off anything mentioned in the above list, and if you are unable to make your way to WEM, a pick up can be arranged by calling 780-413-9855.

 

Originally when we first launched our donation project, we anticipated to have it all wrapped up By EOD Friday. But what happened within the first 24 hours shocked us as we raised $2000 worth of donations! Because of the amount of success we’ve seen and the overwhelming support, we’ve decided to extend it until next week. We have already made three dropoffs to the Emergency Relief Society and are looking forward to our next dropoffs! We’ve seen the momentum die down a bit which is why we’re asking you to share with your listeners and loyal fans just one simple message: If you happen to be at WEM this week and have been touched by the Fort Mac tragedy, please come by and drop off a donation whether small or large at our Rogers location by the Ice Palace. Every little bit helps!

 

Some of us will know exactly what it’s like to be informed that you might not have anything to go back to, and some of us could never imagine. Thank you to everyone for being #albertastrong.”

 

–The Pepper & Dylan Show