Mount Vernon fire victims treated to outpouring of community support on Thanksgiving
Four days have passed since a fire ripped through an apartment building in Mount Vernon, leaving nearly 200 people without a home.
On Thursday night, the community embodied the spirit of the Thanksgiving holiday by providing a warm meal and a helping hand.
"Everybody is coming together"
Latin music and the smell of a familiar home-cooked meal with all the Thanksgiving dressings filled the air inside First Presbyterian Church in Mount Vernon, where Noel Luna spent the holiday with his children.
"Everybody is coming together, and you know it's a beautiful thing to see that, you know, when somebody is in need in a crisis like this," said Luna said, who added when asked what he's thankful for, "I'm alive and I got my kids."
Luna is one of nearly 200 people displaced after a fire tore through an apartment building at 30 Cottage Ave., just before 3 a.m. on Sunday.
"It was very scary and I see my neighbor running. They thought I was in there," Luna said.
Luna shared his apartment Ring video, which shows the rush to evacuate residents as the fire spread. The father and collector of comics, statues, and basketball cards said he fears he lost everything inside the apartment he called home for nearly 20 years.
"It's hard, you know? I had them since I was 10 years old and now they're all gone," Luna said.
Community effort gets impacted families through the holiday
While Luna's treasures are out of reach, volunteers shared their time, a warm meal and a smile on Thursday.
"It's the first time since Sunday that I've seen some of these families smile and get up and dance and so it's the lightening of a burden and it's the best thing that I could ever ask for," said Donna Jackson, director of food services for the Mount Vernon School District.
One of the fire victims took the stage and sang.
"I tried to bring joy to people who are a little depressed," Julio Tavares Paulino said.
It was an all-hands-on-deck event. The Red Cross partnered with several organization and volunteers from all walks of life to help families displaced and sleeping at an elementary school nearby.
Fundraising drive is in full swing
Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard also lent a hand in the kitchen. She said proceeds from the annual Turkey Bowl between the Mount Vernon Police Department and the Fire Department will go to the victims of the fire.
The mayor also said the city is looking to raise $250,000 to help displaced residents find a new home before Christmas.
"We've tried to wrap an ecosystem of love and support around them in a way that helps them feel dignified and not that they're victims but that they are survivors," Patterson-Howard said.
For many impacted families, it's hard to escape the uncertainty, but on Thursday night many said they were feeling grateful.
"I know the world is crazy right now, but you still have very good people out there that are very supportive and willing to help," Luna said.