On 11th October 2017 Tom and Pauline Richardson lost their home, 4199 Wallace Road Santa Rosa, in the Northern California wildfire. In a matter of moments a lifetime of precious memories, irreplaceable possessions and their beautiful home were destroyed and as their family, thousands of miles away, we are devastated for them and find the situation they find themselves in unimaginable. And yet in the face of such uncertainty and adversity they remain the positive people we know them to be.

In their own words “Some share our situation and our thoughts are with them all. Something we’ve learned – while we try to rationalise that stuff is just stuff, it’s not really is it? Some things, and the memories attached, are real artefacts of our lives and it hurts to have lost them. Yes we are safe and that’s the number one thing. But artefacts matter too; a lot. It was a snug little home on a beautiful setting and we are saddened by its passing. However we absolutely intend to take all those ashes and turn them into a beautiful new little home on the same site.”

And so as their family, based at such a distance, the only thing we can think to do to help is to try and raise some funds to help them start to rebuild their lives. A deposit on a rental property, help with insurance excesses to start making claims, a down payment on a replacement car, an RV to live-in in the meantime onsite while they wait for work to commence– whatever it takes to make this dire situation just a little bit easier for them. Whatever small or large amount you feel you can give to help would be greatly appreciated. After all that’s what friends and family are for – to help in times of need and there is no greater need than now for Tom and Pauline so let’s all play our part in helping them to create happy memories from this personal tragedy.